|
Review
by Kozo: |
What can you say about A Chinese Ghost Story
that hasn't been said? A certified Hong Kong Cinema
classic, the film would still probably be playing
Midnight Movie fests nationwide if it weren't for
the obligatory Miramax/Disney embargo. A Chinese
Ghost Story features many of Hong Kong Cinema's
celebrated hallmarks, including over-the-top action,
a wild mix of genres, and overwrought emotions that
prove surprisingly compelling. Nowadays, the movie
may seem slapdash and overeager-to-please, but there's
no denying its impact on Hong Kong Cinema's global
reputation.
Leslie Cheung stars
as Ning, a meek tax collector who finds himself involved
in a wacky supernatural romance. He's slated to become
a victim to enchanting ghost Nie (Joey Wong), who's
bound to an evil tree demon (Lau Siu-Ming) who feed
on men's souls. Ning's soul is slated for consumption,
but due to a variety of circumstances, he's prevented
from becoming soul food. Even more, the comely Nie
grows to care for Ning, and vice versa. Then roving
ghostbuster Wu Ma shows up to take down spirits with
his nifty Taoist methods. There's also impomptu singing,
sumptuous production design, and a tree demon with
an extraordinarily long tongue. What a great film!
Reviewing A Chinese
Ghost Story as an actual film is probably useless
by now, as its international repuation has been all
but etched in stone. It's not hard to see what made
the film such a festival hit. Not only does it possess
Hong Kong's unique mixture of comedy-action-drama-romance,
but it's also genuinely compelling in its hyperemotional
excess and—at the time—willingness to defy
the Western filmmaking rules of the super happy ending.
The potpourri of film techniques (i.e., slow motion,
dutch angles) provides extra zip to the proceedings,
and the production design is amazing in its sheer
manufactured beauty. And Ching Siu-Tung's action is
beautifully choreographed and energetically staged.
However, the most compelling
thing about A Chinese Ghost Story is probably
its sheer cinematic energy. People fly, jump, and
engage in situation comedy with little pause for breath,
and whatever pauses that do occur are usually there
to linger on Joey Wong's lovely face. That everything
seems incredibly fake and staged is irrelevant. A
Chinese Ghost Story is primo eighties Hong Kong
Cinema, which means a complete disregard for any attempt
at realism. Everything here is so hyperrealistic and
over-the-top that it makes Hollywood musicals look
like the very model of restraint.
Sadly, they don't make movies
like this anymore. Even back then, Hong Kong audiences
viewed this sort of slapdash, anything-goes filmmaking
as borderline crap. And in a way, they're sort of
correct. A Chinese Ghost Story—and much
of its eighties ilk—are really not much more
than glorified B-movie stuff. And most people view
B-movies as the very definition of crap. Well, if
that's the case then A Chinese Ghost Story is the greatest crap ever made. (Kozo 1990/2002) |
|
