In Mandarin with English & Chinese subtitles
Genre: Comedy
Director: Raymond Wong and Herman Yau
Cast: Louis Koo, Ronald Cheng, Sandra Ng, Raymond
Wong, Lynn Xiong, Lam Suet, Angelababy, Lam Tze-Chung
RunTime: 1 hr 32 mins
Released By: GV & Scorpio East Pictures
Rating: PG
Official Website: http://www.happyhome2010.com/
Opening Day: 18 February 2010
Synopsis:
Princess
Pearl of Flowerland is sent to Mainland at a young age to
learn her ceremonials duties. Her mother, the Queen Mother
misses her daughter very much that the King orders his sister,
the princess, to return home. However, the princess has fallen
in love with General Wing of the Mainland army and is reluctant
to part from him. As their boat approaches the Flowerland
border, Pearl & Wing save the life of a girl named Ying,
who seeks to throw herself into sea after running away from
an arranged marriage. Pearl, Wing and Ying are attacked by
pirates and Pearl falls overboard in the ensuing chaos. On
arrival in Flowerland, the King mistakes Ying for his sister,
while Pearl is saved by Ying's father, Million.
Movie Review:
As
much as we’d hoped Stephen Chow would return to the
franchise he made popular, our hopes are dashed once again
with this fifth (or second, depending on which way you look
at it) instalment of the perennial Lunar New Year comedy “All’s
Well Ends Well”. Rebooted last year by producer Raymond
Wong after an 11-year hiatus, this second chapter of the revamp
reunites the cast Wong brought together, along with some fresh
new faces.
Back
again to star in this in-name only sequel are Louis Koo, Sandra
Ng, Ronald Cheng and of course, Raymond Wong himself, and
let’s just say that it’s simply delightful to
see thespians like Sandra Ng and Ronald Cheng ham it up unreservedly
onscreen. Not only are they physically expressive (Ronald
Cheng could very well be the next Stephen Chow), they also
possess perfect comedic timing and it is a combination of
both that make their scenes in the movie stand out.
Written
by Raymond Wong’s son Edmond Wong (who also wrote Ip
Man and its sequel), “All’s Well Ends Well Too
2010” continues the running theme of mistaken identity
in the series. Here the mix-up is between Princess Pearl (Angelababy),
sister of the King (Louis Koo) of Flowerland, and Ying (Lynn
Xiong), the daughter of greedy schemer Million (Raymond Wong).
What happens next is simply an excuse to throw in a whole
bunch of jokes that are best described as hit and miss affairs.
Indeed,
Edmond Wong’s script is surprisingly witty and the film’s
funniest moments lie in the lively banter among the various
characters- in particular, the war of words between Louis
Koo and Sandra Ng about what’s legal and what’s
not in the kingdom of Flowerland towards the end of the movie
is a hoot. Just as hilarious is the bartering between Raymond
Wong and Sandra Ng about how much one owes the other in the
form of a rap. And audiences may rest easy, unlike the other
CNY comedy “72 Tenants of Prosperity”, this movie
survives its Mandarin dubbing in much better shape.
Unfortunately,
“All’s Well Ends Well Too 2010” falters
when it attempts to garner its share of laughs through slapstick
or any form of physical comedy. Coming off less inspired than
lame, the obligatory screwball antics suffer from a distinct
lack of direction. Especially tedious is the martial arts
competition that the King organises to choose a suitor for
Princess Pearl, which is simply a pretext for inserting a
dreary parody of Ip Man.
Ironic as it may sound, it does take skill to make nonsensical
comedy. Alas, it appears that neither director (Raymond Wong
and Herman Yau) has the finesse to pull it off- either that
nor one of them doesn’t, for it does seem that the film
can be divided into the parts that really work and the ones
that just don’t. Luckily, the parts that do are genuinely
funny. Yes, not all is well with this fifth chapter in the
series, but the clever banter and the ensemble cast still
manage to make this movie end well on a high note.
If
you’re looking for some nice laughs, and are in a generous
mood, you’ll find “All’s Well Ends Well
Too 2010” quite the amusing and entertaining movie this
CNY- though we are still secretly hopeful that one day, Stephen
Chow will decide to return to such a distinct Hong Kong-flavoured
screwball comedy.
Movie
Rating:
(The definitive 'he sui pian' franchise returns yet
again without Stephen Chow- but with enough life and laughs
to keep you entertained)
Review by Gabriel Chong
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