14 January 2009, 4pm at Marina Mandarin Hotel

Twelve years is how long it has been since Raymond Wong last made an All’s Well Ends Well movie and judging by the chemistry that its stars and director share, it is definitely one happy reunion.

In town to promote his latest addition to the perennially popular franchise, producer Raymond Wong was joined by his on-screen co-star Sandra Ng, as well as the movie’s writer-director Vincent Kok. The trio were evidently in high spirits about their 'he sui pian' at the Marina Mandarin ballroom where they met members of the press.

"Every Chinese New Year, people will ask me, ‘When are you making another All’s Well Ends Well movie’," said Raymond Wong. "So this year I roped in director Vincent Kok and Sandra Ng and decided to give it another go!"

"It’s been a few years since anyone from Hong Kong has made a Lunar New Year comedy," said Vincent Kok, the director of many such movies like Marry a Rich Man and The Lucky Star. And it has only gotten more challenging.

"People’s tastes have changed," he observed, "So while comedies of the past relied more on slapstick, audiences today prefer a more natural comedic style."

But that’s not the only thing different that sets All’s Well Ends Well 2009 apart from its predecessors. This time round, the franchise no longer has the marque name of Stephen Chow- though that was not from a lack of trying.

"After the previous ’97 All’s Well Ends Well, Stephen Chow and I did talk about doing another movie. We talked about it year after year until 2002 but nothing eventually came out of it," said Raymond Wong." And in the meantime, his fees also got more and more expensive," he laughed, "So it became more and more difficult for us to collaborate again."

Nevertheless, fans of the series will still be able to see Raymond Wong and Sandra Ng on screen, their fourth collaboration together.

Unlike the first All’s Well Ends Well, where they were a bickering couple, the pair now play love interests as Wong’s character has a crush on Sandra’s character. But you can be sure that the on-screen pair do not share any sparks in real life- ask Raymond Wong if he’s jealous that Sandra Ng also gets to kiss Louis Koo in the movie and his answer is a firm no.

Romancing aside, Sandra Ng’s character is probably one of the most challenging to play in the film, according to director Vincent Kok. In fact, Vincent Kok was so precise with what he wanted from her character that he even directed her how to end off her lines of dialogue the way he wanted in the movie.

"I have seen and I know what Sandra Ng is like," said Vincent Kok, "But what I wanted was for the audience to see her in her character Yu Zhu’s shoes." And he has nothing but praise for the veteran comedian. "I had a certain conception of her character but after just a short while, she (Sandra) knew exactly what I wanted from it."

But of course, it wasn’t all work and no joy on the set of the movie. As Sandra Ng shares, there were many instances that would certainly make it into the ever-popular NGs (almost a staple in today’s comedies) of the film.

One particularly memorable occasion was when the cast and crew were still unsure which Mainland destination they would be filming at. So for one of the scenes where Raymond Wong’s character holds up a travel book, the cast and crew did several takes of every possible location that they had in mind.

"By the time we reached the eighth take. I just couldn’t help but burst out laughing. I think Raymond Wong was the only one who could still keep a straight face and continue doing the scene," said Sandra Ng, to boisterous laughter from both Raymond Wong and Vincent Kok.

Filming the family-themed All’s Well Ends Well 2009 for Sandra Ng also had more than a sense of the familial. For the first time, she is sharing the screen with her real father, Ha Cheung Chau (who plays her onscreen father).

It was Raymond Wong’s decision to bring Ha Cheung Chau on board. "He’s a great comedy actor. And since father and daughter have never acted together, I thought it was a great idea to get them to do so in this movie."

"One thing I’m really happy about is that this year I can bring three generations of my family- my father, myself, and my daughter- to go watch this movie in the cinema together," Sandra Ng added, with a blissful smile on her face. "Don’t you think that’s truly 'jia you xi shi' (a joyous occasion in the family)?"

And what Sandra Ng, as well as Raymond Wong and Vincent Kok, hope is that their 'he sui pian' can be the perfect comedy panacea to chase away whatever blues you may have this Chinese New Year.

"My greatest joy in when viewers come out of the movie and tell me that they’ve had a wonderful time laughing their way through," said Raymond Wong. Indeed, that would be an 'all’s well ends well' for cast and crew alike.