MOVIE

8/10

When I first started to watch this I didn't know what to expect. I heard it had won a number of awards and that it generally had good reviews, apart from that I knew nothing about it.

The story revolves around the relationship between Lau Ching-Wan and Anita Yuen, and their differing views on their lives. Kit (Lau), who has just split up with his well-known singer girlfriend, meets Anita in the local park. Gradually their relationship blossoms and Kit begins to enjoy life again, until...
Well, I've decided to stop their because before I saw this film I read a quick review of it, and the reviewer gave away the ending, which spoilt it some what!
I'll just say this - Lau Ching-Wan and Anita Yuen are both superb, as are the rest of the cast, and without such strong performances, the film would have lacked any emotion what soever.

PICTURE

7/10

Hmm...not stunning and not dreadful. For a '93 production, the quality was disappointing. The colour and sharpness ranged from good to excellent, without ever really deciding which it wanted to be. There's nothing wrong with the quality, it's just that having watched Millionaire's Express (1986), the film should look better.

SOUND

6/10

The sound is reasonably clear, although dialogue can sometimes appear muffled.
The film has a beautiful soundtrack, which adds polish to the overall production, and is reproduced well.

SUBTITLES

5/10

Very "Hong Kong" if you know what I mean. Grammatical and syntax errors throughout, though not so bad as to make the film incomprehensible. The one thing I really hate with some Hong Kong DVD's is when writing and singing is not subtitled, as is the case here.
At the end of the film a "letter" is printed on screen, in Chinese, rounding off the film nicely. However, it's not Subtitled! After a bit of digging, I was able to get a rough translation which I include at the very bottom of the review - DO NOT READ IT BEFORE WATCHING THE FILM!

EXTRAS

1/10

Poor by comparison to most "average" DVDs - you only get info on Lau Ching Wan - What About Anita?! - and there's no theatrical trailer. I was quite disappointed about the extras, but seeing as the film is brilliant, I'll let it go...

CONCLUSION

6/10

I would recommend anyone to buy this film. It's wonderfully acted, directed and scored and I wish more films like this were made in Hong Kong.
My review of the DVD may sound harsh, but after seeing the quality of some other Universe DVD's, and their subtitling of songs and writing, I feel it's fair.
The combination of a very good film, on a rather lacklustre disc, means it's difficicult to fully recommend...
Pick it up cheaply (no more than $9), and you'll easily be getting your money's worth.

MOVIE		8/10
PICTURE		7/10
SOUND		6/10
SUBTITLES		5/10
EXTRAS		1/10
MENUS		5/10
PACKAGING		6/10
OVERALL		6/10

 

SPOILER!!

The "letter" reads:

Kit,

If the hardest thing in life is death, then everything else should be easy.

Mui.