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DANGEROUS GAMES (China)

 ABOUT THE MOVIE

Genre: Comedy
Starring: Xia Yu, Eric Tsang, GiGi Leung, Tang Yan, Qi Ji
Director: Chin Jiang Han
Rating: PG

Year Made: 2008

 

 


 SPECIAL FEATURES

- NIL


 

 


 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Languages: Mandarin
Subtitles: English/Chinese
Aspect Ratio: 4:3
Sound: -
Running Time: 1 hr 30 mins
Region Code: NTSC 3
Distributor: InnoF
orm Media

 

 

SYNOPSIS:

The Chinese title is an old Chinese saying as well as a drinking game whose rule is similar to "Paper Scissors Rock". Literally, it means naturally, every thing or creature on earth has some kind of restraint on someone or something; however at the same time one would definitely have something or someone else that one would b subdued to.

Tycoon Hu, amusement park hot air balloon operator Dachun, beer girl Huan'er, game-loving city girl Tang Tang and handsome pianist Qiaobang are very different people living out their respective lives in the big city. They should have nothing to do with each other but a fateful turn of events pulls these five people into a game. Who will emerge victorious in the end?

MOVIE REVIEW:
  

There are countless movies which never make it to our local cineplexes – some good, some not so good, some simply bad. Thanks to DVDs, we get to watch some of these movies. This is also where you put yourself in a distributor’s shoes, whether you should distribute this movie on the big screen commercially. The latest such flick this reviewer had watched on his trusty computer is this Wang Guangli-directed movie.

Never heard of the guy? Don’t worry, we haven’t either.

Wang directs some familiar faces like the acclaimed Mainland Chinese actor Xia Yu (Dragon Squad, The Painted Veil), the award winning and versatile Eric Tsang (Kung Fu Dunk, Infernal Affairs) and sweetie pie Gigi Leung (he Magic Gourd, Turn Left turn Right) in this 90-minute movie about different characters whose lives become interconnected after a turn of events involving a kidnap, a hot air balloon, a piano recital and a car accident.

The Chinese translation of the movie title is a traditional game phrase which reflects on the ripple effect of all things in life. This is probably the highlight of the story of this picture. While we shall not reveal too much here, we must admit that this Mainland Chinese production does have a decent premise which involves some clever writing in its script – before it becomes gimmicky by intertwining too much contrived plot lines together. It doesn’t help that a series of sloppily graphics keep appearing in scenes with intentions to perk up the otherwise dull movie.

Thankfully, the cast does deliver a decent performance which makes the movie a little more watch-able. Other than the abovementioned names, Mainland Chinese actors Tang Yan and Qi Ji are fresh faces and may break some ground in their homeland. The actors have nice chemistry with each other and despite their slapstick and sometimes exaggerated performances; your viewing experience won’t be that bad if your expectations weren’t too high in the first place.

Considering this was released in December 2007 in Mainland China, the movie was probably aimed at the Chinese New Year crowd there. There is even a nice little segment in the end credits where the cast plays the traditional game with each other before wishing the viewers a happy holiday. Like we mentioned at the beginning of this review, there are many movies which local distributors do not pick up. This forgettable and bland movie would have never survived the battle that involved CJ7’s Stephen Chow and Kung Fu Dunk’s Jay Chou. Not that you as a viewer is missing much though.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

This Code 3 DVD contains no bonus features.

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The disc’s visual transfer isn’t anything spectacular, especially when the movie isn’t a must to watch on the big screen. The soundtrack is presented in Mandarin.   

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING:


Review by John Li

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This review is made possible with the kind support from InnoForm Media


 

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