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Cast:
Lawrence
Chou
Yeung
Shing Lam
Zeny
Kwok
Eric
Tsang
Helen
Law
Darren
Cheng
Yuki
Lai
Producer:
Claudie
Chung Chun
Doris
Tse
Director:
Thomas
Chow
Score:
 
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MERRY
GO ROUND
AKA:
Merry-Go-Round
Year:
2001 Reviewer: Andrew
Saroch
A
rundown shop becomes the site for a new noodle restaurant run
by a cheery chef (Tsang) and his two children. Immediately on
opening the shop, a young girl (Yeung) attaches herself to the
family and decides to help the new business as it starts out.
This newcomer attracts the interest of the Fung (Chou), the
son of the owner and an initial friendship blossoms into a
small-scale romance. Meanwhile the young daughter Cocoa (Lai)
befriends a boy who infrequently visits with his elderly
grandmother. The former dynamic opens up as the innocent
couple of Fung and his new girlfriend begin to understand more
about each other while facing up to her over-protective sister
(Kwok). The latter develops as Cocoa discovers her little
visitor Locust is an orphan who lives in near poverty with his
grandmother while still trying to impress her. By the end of
the tenancy for the restaurant and with the possibility of it
closing down, all of the characters must confront issues
before they go their separate ways.
The
U.S. teen romance flick is something that has seen a
resurrection in popularity in recent years. This Hong Kong
examination of the subject is a million miles away from these
though. The concentration is not on outrageous humour or cheap
shock value, but instead pans out into a delightfully light
and frothy inspection on young love. The delicate nature of
the central relationship and the barriers it faces is
carefully crafted in such a way that a very subtle romance is
thoroughly engrossing. By succeeding here, director Thomas
Chow creates a very sympathetic array of characters that
intrigue and entertain. Full credit should go to the fresh
young cast who are outstanding in their varying roles with
Lawrence Chou, Yeung Shing lam and especially Zeny Kwok with
definite potential to be stars of the future. Even the two
youngest members of the cast are perfectly confident in fairly
challenging roles and, to top things off, veteran performers
Eric Tsang and Helen Law offering well-rounded support.
With
such a relatively inexperienced cast deservedly earning
praise, it's essential to understand how important director
Thomas Chow's contribution is. As has been said, Chow embraces
the simplicity and humanity that fellow film-makers Derek Chiu
and Derek Yee utilise. By only hinting at serious issues
instead of sign-posting them in very obvious fashion, Chow
allows what is thought-provoking to be truly effective. It's
not a perfect film - the quirky moments are sometimes a bit
too overdone and the pace is slightly inconsistent - but it is
a nice surprise from last year and continues to show that Hong
Kong cinema has much to be proud of.
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