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DIARY
OF A BIG MAN
AKA:
The Diary Of A Big Man
Year:
1988 Reviewer: Andrew
Saroch
After
his huge success in 'A
Better Tomorrow', Chow Yun Fat was very rarely off the
screens in the Hong Kong cinema circuit. His time was divided
between heroic bloodshed thrillers, heartfelt dramas and zany
comedies; Diary Of A Big Man is one such comedy.
Chow
takes the lead role as a man who, through a set of confused
circumstances, marries two different women (Sally Yeh and Joey
Wong no less!) in two different cities. All is going quite
well as he manages to keep both wives from knowing about the
other and, with the help of his loyal friend (Waise Lee),
spends enough time with them to continue the secrecy. The facade
cannot continue forever though and Chow is confronted
with the challenge of keeping the two wives apart after they
get to know each other as friends. What follows is a series of
elaborate tricks to stop them finding out as Chow and the
long-suffering Lee create diversions and complicated
explanation for the situations they find themselves in. An
extra level of difficulty is soon added when a suspicious cop
(Cheng) and Lee's equally curious girlfriend (Ng) begin to pry
into the cover-up.
This
very enjoyable comedy gives Chow Yun Fat a real chance to show
another side to his acting skills and he triumphs in what is,
on the surface, a very unsympathetic role. His persona drags
him out of numerous situations and keeps the audience engaged
through the complications that arise. Yeh and Wong are two
classy actresses who fill their initially flat characters with
real charm and alongside them is the excellent Waise Lee who
shines in a refreshingly different role. All three compliment
Chow and ensure that the film is very much an ensemble piece.
Diary
Of A Big Man is not 'laugh-out-loud' comedy, but is
recommended to all Chow Yun Fat fans as it contains enough
elements to make it a highly entertaining film. The ending
lets the film down, but it just about scrapes into the four
star bracket.
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