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Genre: Comedy/Romance
Director: Wing Shya and Tony Chan
Cast: Jacky Cheung, Nicholas Tse, Rene Liu, Vivian Hsu, Barbie Hsu, Angelababy, Jing Boran, Duan Yihong, Fu Xinbo, Gordon Liu, Daniel Wu
RunTime: 1 hr 35 mins
Released By: 20th Century Fox
Rating: PG
Official Website: http://www.hotsummerdays.com.tw
Opening Day: 25 February 2010
Synopsis:
6 heart-warming stories during a summer when the heat ignites emotions and changes lives forever.
Movie Review:
We can totally empathize with the characters
in this movie. Having lived on this sunny island for our whole
lives, how can one not have experienced the sweltering heat
that has made us drenched with drops of perspiration? But
what we don’t understand is, how did these pretty stars
manage to look so good under the scorching sun? And bask in
the joy of love at the same time? You’ve got to give
it to directors Wing Shya and Tony Chan for making sweating
look so aesthetically sensuous. It’s something you won’t
expect to see on us mere mortals.
In what seems to be a popular method of storytelling,
this Hong Kong Chinese production interweaves several romantic
tales together to evoke your emotions for love and all things
sweet. There’s the story of a single father who sends
a text message to a foot masseuse by mistake, and continues
the cross border relationship. There’s the story of
an air conditioner repairman who meets a tough biker chick
with a deep secret. There’s the story of a simple village
boy who is out on a mission to woo the girl of his heart by
standing under the hot sun for 100 days. There’s the
story of an uptight sushi chef and his loving girlfriend who
yearns for happiness to return. And a rather odd addition
to these tales is how a diva photographer loses his eyesight
after being cursed by a model.
And talking about photographers, you would
almost sense this to be a project of indulgence, after seeing
the gorgeous photographic cinematography in motion. Celebrity
photographer Wing Shya puts his skills to good use in this
movie, having the stars composed in visually enticing shots
which will make you feel like you are flipping through a classy
coffee table book. It is also probably his influence as a
photographer (his credits as stills photographer include 2007’s
Blood Brothers and Wong Kar Wai’s segment in 2004’s
Eros) that so many stars are on board this project. Main leads
aside, look out for cameos by Shawn Yue, Charlene Choi and
a certain Maggie Cheung (who is interestingly simply credited
as “Ms Cheung” in the end credits).
Alas, the same vigour can’t be used
in the storytelling. While this will appeal to the common
crowd, the convenient and sometimes lazy scripting will not
be an intelligent viewer’s cup of tea. Some stories
stand out better than the others – Look no further than
the tedious tale between Daniel Wu (playing a sushi chef named
“Soy Sauce”) and Vivian Hsu (playing his girlfriend
named “Wasabi”). This segment pales in comparison
to the sweet tales played out by Jacky Cheung/ Rene Liu, and
Jing Boran/ Angelababy. Competent performances aside, you’d
feel for the bittersweet and genuine feelings of the protagonists
in these two segments. The filmmakers also try their hands
at linking the different stories together, but not to the
best effect.
Still,
this accessible and digestible 93 minute movie is a pleasant
showcase of the cast’s competencies as actors. Nicholas
Tse, Barbie Hsu and the lesser known Duan Yihong and Fu Xinbo
make up the star studded cast which will have no problem drawing
in the crowds. Also, look out for Gordon Liu, whose character
of a widower will warm your heart. And it doesn’t take
a blazing sun to do that.
Movie Rating:
(This lightweight movie will be a breeze to sit through
in the sizzling heat)
Review by John Li
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