there's something about ..... cj7

Yesterday I caught CJ7 in the theater.

After refusing to watch a pirated version from JB at my inlaws place on CNYday2 (it's HK version and the peddlar told them it was recorded in the cinema), I was hoping this show would boost my ego during my next visit to my inlaws.

How?

Inlaws : hey.. we got CJ7 DVD... you want to watch... (translated from dialect)

Me: No lah... Watching it in the cinema tomorrow (very proud of my middle-class syndrome)

inlaws: this show no effects one...

Me: It's ok... I bought the ticket already.

And now I hope I never have to return to my inlaws' place and be asked "CJ7.. HOR KUA BOH?"

Seriously... I'm disappointed. In retrospect, I would have taken the pirated DVD and watched it at home. I didn't feel it was worth watching it at the cinema.

Don't take me wrong. The movie is not all bad but I was disappointed. But the best thing about the movie was actually the trailer. It was so good you really want to watch the movie. That is what all good trailers do.



This is not your stephen Chow slapstick comedy that is found in Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle.

So you can imagine my disappointment hoping to get a laugh and got none of it. In fact, you can call this heartwarming or a tearjerker if you are ultra sensitive.

The show is well-made actually. Stephen Chow was convincing as a odd-job labouror trying to be a good father. The kid acted very well. The supporting cast was generally good. The "effects" on the alien is not too bad. The story is atypical but you don't feel jaded like watching another gangster movie from HK or another Rocky franchise. The little humour there and then was just about right for this kind of show.

I like the subtle reference to his last 2 shows. Like how Kung Fu Hustle made reference to Shaolin Soccer, and this one made reference to the 2. And I like how at the end of the show, Stephen Chow decided to revert back to his slapstick after acting serious throughout the movie, almost like telling the world that he-is-sorry- and-this-would-be-the-last-time-he-is-doing-a-serious-movie.

But I'm still disappointed.

P/s: Looks like CJ7 is the winner during this CNY movie feast. From the look of monitor screen at GV, Ah Long looks like a very close second place and that Kung Fu basketball is a obvious distant 3rd.