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Starring
:
Michael
Hui
Miriam
Yeung
Lau
Ching Wan
Hui
Shiu Hung
Elaine
Jin
Lo
Meng
Monica
Lo
Hayama
Go
Yuan
Yuan
Producer
:
Joe
Ma
Director
:
Joe
Ma
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THREE
OF A KIND (2004)
Reviewed
by Andrew Saroch
While
'New Police Story' and 'Kung Fu Hustle' remain the films
everyone is especially eager to see in 2004, I anticipated Joe
Ma's 'Three Of A Kind' equally as much. The obvious reason for
such excitement was that, after years away from the big
screen, Hong Kong legend Michael Hui returned to a lead role
in a new blockbuster. After a wonderful cameo in 'Fantasia',
Hui broke his screen hiatus and now local audiences can savour
the opportunity of seeing the comic master back. Alongside him
are Miriam Yeung - a comic actress whose screen persona has
always entertained me - and Lau Ching Wan, still one of the
great actors in Hong Kong. 'Three Of A Kind' undoubtedly had
potential to be a minor classic, which is why the finished
production is even more heart-breaking.
Dragon
Lone (Hui) is a wuxia writer who lives a comfortable life
living off the significant royalties of his pulp novels.
Doting on his daughter Sophia (Yeung), Lone lives a cautious
life and refuses to treat her as a woman, preferring to
remember her as his little girl. When Sophia's employer,
hedonistic charmer Frankie (Lau Ching Wan), arrives on the
scene, Lone is especially eager to protect his daughter.
Forcing Frankie to make a vow never to court Sophia, Lone
continues to meddle with his daughter's private life. However,
the more time that the shallow Frankie spends with Sophia, the
more he realises that he wants to settle down and live his
life with the one woman who has always been close to him.
Unfortunately, Lone is expectedly indignant at Frankie's
change of heart and determines to stop the romance blossoming.
On
paper, 'Three Of A Kind' has the kind of synopsis that
promises to be like a variation on 'Meet The Parents'; the
thought of a Hong Kong take on this amusing hit would
certainly have been worth watching. Sadly, 'Three Of A Kind'
is a comedy that lacks any kind of direction or impetus,
choosing to meander on to the end of its overlong duration.
While its clearly got the look of a blockbuster with an
impressive cast and production values, the resulting effort is
sorely lacking in a humorous cutting edge. Starting with a
melodramatic introduction, 'Three Of A Kind' struggles to
ascertain what tone should be employed for the rest of its
running time. Switching between lightweight comedy and moments
of awkward romantic sentiment, 'Three Of A Kind' is wholly
unsuccessful in nearly every area.
One
obvious constraint on the film is director Joe Ma, who fails
to harness any of Michael Hui's energy or inspiration. Joe Ma
is a director who may not be hitting the artistic heights of
Johnnie To or Derek Yee, but has often managed to turn out
entertaining productions to appreciative audiences. At his
best, Ma manages to take pedestrian concepts - both comic and
dramatic - and turn them into hugely watchable features (see 'Love
Undercover' and 'Funeral
March'). However, in 'Three Of A Kind', Ma has churned out
a film that makes no effective use of Michael Hui had his
experience. Scenes featuring Hui seem to be restraining his
persona; every time it looks like the dead-pan humour or Hui
trademarks are ready to emerge, the excitement is cruelly
stamped out. Hui clearly has very little involvement in the
film behind the scenes and such an indifference shows.
'Three
Of A Kind' is harmless enough as a stand-alone feature despite
its serious flaws. It isn't necessarily painful to watch, but
any film that has such a lack of creativity is hardly going to
inspire. Not only is Hui poorly used, but his supporting cast
is also wasted. While Lau Ching Wan has a degree of fun in his
philandering role, Miriam Yeung shows little or none of the
charm that she's bought to films like 'Dry
Wood, Fierce Fire' etc. Without the spark within some of
the most important performers of the production, the whole
effort seems lazy and directionless. Even the dramatic denouement
is lacking in any real wit or imagination. To say this about a
Michael Hui film is truly a sad thing.
Those
not familiar with films like 'The
Private Eyes' or 'Security
Unlimited' may get some enjoyment from 'Three Of A Kind'.
It's mostly inoffensive (despite one very unpleasant joke
featuring Michael considering what to do to Lau Ching Wan's
character) and has a few pleasing allusions to wuxia novels.
Nevertheless, anyone who's seen any of the Hui brothers films
will be bitterly disappointed and will wonder why Hui appears
in it as his role is so bland that any actor could've played
it. If nothing else, it can be hoped that 'Three Of A Kind'
will see Michael Hui return to the big screen on a permanent
basis and produce something that will please his many fans. As
it stands though, this is a shallow romantic comedy that has
very little of either quality therein - and even more
pertinently, it manages the unenviable feat of wasting Michael
Hui.
Rating:
 
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