|
THE
OTHER SIDE OF GENTLEMEN (1984)
A.K.A.
- The Other Side Of A Gentleman
Reviewed
by Rob Daniel
The
course of true love never runs smoothly, but it crashes about
hopelessly for 86 long minutes in this sophomoric Ringo Lam
romantic misfire. Those
drawn by Lam or Brigitte Lin expecting a taut thriller are
implored to steer clear.
Tam
is Alan Ng, an apparent example of the amoral youth of today
(today being the early eighties).
Not that Alan indulges in crime, drugs or assault; in
fact he is merely a boorish Casanova with an unsuccessful
track record. But
church folk and university psychology professors enlist
fresh-faced undergraduate Jo Jo (Lin) to woo Alan then dump
him, thereby teaching him social responsibility.
But, for reasons kept to herself Jo Jo begins to fall
for Al, much to the chagrin of her professor fiancé.
There follows a tortuous and tortured series of lame
comic set pieces and clumsy melodrama, culminating in a
tragic-then-happy-ending so perverse it would make Romeo slap
Juliet.
Lam
later proved himself a minor master of suspense, but is adrift
when tackling matters of the heart.
A hectoring tone veers between lame pratfalls and
sub-Mills & Boon amorous histrionics, and Tam and Lin have
all the spark of two wet fish rubbed together.
Lam's
indifference to 'The Other Side of Gentleman' is evident from
his pedestrian direction, showing interest only in a brief,
but impressively staged road accident that leads to that weird
ending. More
offensive than Lam's bland visuals is the eighties fashion the
cast sport, looking like rejects from some abandoned 'Flashdance'
sequel. Alan
works in a fashion store, and his climactic wedding day
gate-crashing "I'm a pair of jeans, but you want me to be
trousers" sermon is an all-time worst movie moment, even
allowing for dodgy subtitling.
With
all characters underwritten it seems churlish to criticize
performances, but eighties Asian singing sensation Tam is a
charisma vacuum and not even the legendary Lin can convince in
her thankless damp squib of a role.
Hard to imagine Quentin Tarantino borrowing from this
one.
Rating:
 
|
