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Starring
:
Yuen
Biao
Lowell
Lo
Lok
Siu Fan
Hui
Ying Hung
Paul
Chun Pui
James
Tien
Dick
Wei
Action
:
Yuen
Biao
Producer
:
Anthony
Chow
Barry
Wong
Director
:
Joseph
Cheung
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ROSA
(1986)
Reviewed
by Andrew Saroch
'Rosa'
is another of those simple, yet very enjoyable action comedies
that Hong Kong seemed to produce with effortless ease in the
80's. This period of Hong Kong cinema commanded a huge legion
of fans worldwide due to the straight-forward directive that
they seemed to operate by: to amuse, to excite, but most of
all to entertain.
Yuen
Biao and Lowell Lo play two police officers who are teamed up
under the direction of a grumpy superior. Having both managed
to get on their superior's wrong side, the duo find that their
assignments are of the undesirable kind and they've become the
laughing stock of the force. Things seem to take a change for
the better when they're given the task of locating an
important police informant who has damning evidence on a local
villain, but has gone into hiding. Their only lead is the
informant's girlfriend - a model by the name of Rosa - who is
still in contact with him. It doesn't take very long for Lo to
fall in love with Rosa and attempt to use his police persona
to woe her; she, however, is far from impressed and not only
refuses Lo's help, but also avoids police protection. Matters
take a more serious turn when Rosa realises the danger she's
in and is therefore forced to lodge with Lo, Biao and Lo's
sister (Hui Ying Hung). When the informant is killed and his
information is passed on to Rosa, the villains find out her
location and kidnap her and Lo's sister, hoping to use them as
bait for the two cops and get their hands on the incriminating
evidence. With the women they love in danger, the resourceful
pair make their way to their enemies' hideout and attempt to
bring them to justice.
While
'Rosa' isn't one of the best action-comedies to come out of
Hong Kong in the 80's, it is still a constantly watchable one.
The main emphasis of the film is comedy and this portion of
the film is entertaining if unremarkable. Many prospective
viewers will already know if this uniquely Hong Kong humour
will appeal to them; if they have no interest in this harmless
and fairly innocent style of humour, then 'Rosa' is best
avoided, but for most it will make for a good 90 minutes. A
film with Yuen Biao in usually demands some action and 'Rosa'
supplies this with quality rather than quantity. His closing
battle with Dick Wei is well worth waiting for as it features
excellent choreography and a few interesting touches i.e. the
brief continuation of the bout in a meat freezer. Although
Yuen Biao is the main strength of the film, the supporting
cast is full of regular Hong Kong actors that help level out
the duration of the film and boost the sometimes flagging
pace. 'Rosa' is not the best film Yuen Biao has made, but for
his fans (myself included) it is a good addition to his list.
Rating:
  
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