God of Gamblers Returns
Ko Chun: Chow Yun-Fat
"Little Trumpet": Tony Leung Ka-Fai
Yiu Yiu: Ng Sin Lin
Hoi Yuen: Tse Miu
Hoi Tong: Chingmy Yau
IMDb link: http://us.imdb.com/Title?0109683
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Version reviewed: DVD
Ratings:
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DVD Audio: 5 of 10
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DVD Video: 5 of 10
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Subtitles: 4 of 10
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Story: 6 of 10
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Performances: 6 of 10
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CYF: 5 of 10
One of Chow Yun-Fat's final films before venturing, like
John Woo before him, to Hollywood. CYF has stated that
it was boredom with the same roles being offered to him
over and over that led to his foray into American filmmaking,
and this is surely one of the roles to which he referred.
During this entire film CYF appears preoccupied and depressed, and
even physically ill; his normally sleek figure is bloated and
few traces of his famous dimpled smile are evident. This
is not the face - or the performance - of a happy man.
Nonetheless, this is an entertaining film if taken for what it is: an
unashamed cash-in on the wildly popular and influential God of
Gamblers of five years before. Director Wong Jing is responsible
for both the original film and this one, as well as the other
set of Du Shen films starring Steven Chiau. (For help deciphering
which films are which, see the
q&d guide to Du Shen films.)
Wong Jing has never been known for his delicate sensibilities or refined
tastes, and in this film we see quite a few examples of how this holds
true: Ko Chun's pregnant wife is killed in the first few moments of the film,
disemboweled so that her unborn child can be removed and placed in a specimen
jar to taunt Ko Chun; a cat (though in all fairness it does appear to be a stuffed
animal after the first few shots establish the cat's existance) is thrown unceremoniously
out of a car window and dragged down the road on its leash; a man's hands are removed
to pay his gambling debts. Other than the disembowelment none of the scenes are
particulary explicit (and the actual evisceration takes place off-screen, only the
aftermath is displayed) but are disturbing nonetheless. Even in a film (and a director,
genre and cinematic culture) riddled with violence and death, these are
images which will undoubtedly upset viewers who were expecting a reprise of
the overall gentle nature of the original God of Gamblers.
The plot concerns the thoroughly despicable Chau, aptly called the Devil of Gamblers
(played with a high level of nastiness by Ng Hing-Kwok) as he is Du Shen's polar
opposite: arrogant, nasty, mean, violent (not in a good way) and basically
totally psychotic. Chau is not a man to be slighted, and when Ko refuses (we
are led to believe at the request of Ko Chun's wife) to gamble with Chau, Chau isn't pleased
with this lack of opportunity to prove he can best Ko Chun. To goad Ko into a showdown
or else, he invades Ko Chun's French estate, kills his wife and
unborn son (in the above-mentioned nasty way) and leaves a taunting videotape laughing
at the God of Gamblers' supposed cowardice to meet the Devil of Gamblers at the
gaming table.
A plot complication is that of the last wish of Ko Chun's dying wife: that Ko Chun
should renounce gambling for one year from her death, and that he should not reveal
to anyone that he is the God of Gamblers for that same period of time. While the
reasons for this are somewhat murky, her observation that for four years the couple
have lived happily in seclusion on their estate in France seems to be part of it; she
seems to believe that Ko Chun has lost touch with the evils of the world while living
in domestic bliss, and she wants him to lie low for a year after the terrible events
of that day which led to the destruction of their family. At least that's the only
plausible explanation I could glean from the short scene in which all this takes
place.
Months later, Ko Chun sets out for a tour down China's historic Silk Road, trying to
settle his mind, but his hatred for Chau is as strong as ever and the film begins
in earnest with only 15 days of his wife's wish left to run. From this point Ko Chun
is subjected to everything from being harpooned while underwater to chased by
Mainland cops, struggles with crooked Taiwanese sausage gamblers (yes, sausage gamblers)
and more. During all of this mayhem he becomes responsible for the care of an annoying
little rich brat Hoi Yuen (played by Tse Miu); while carrying out this responsibility
he ends up meeting with the rest of the cast of characters who will assist him in his
revenge against the Devil of Gamblers.
Chingmy Yau, mostly known for her physical attributes rather than her acting talents,
actually does rather well in this film. Tony Leung Ka-Fai does a great comedic
job as "Little Trumpet", the small-town thug who impersonates Du Shen (while CYF
does his own Andy Lau/"Knife" impersonation and ends up looking more like a Chinese
Elvis Presley in his white t-shirt, black leather jacket and pouffy hair). Ng Sin
Lin is annoying, adorable and tragic in turns as Trumpet's sister Yiu Yiu. The
only scene in which CYF really shines is the rather downbeat one where Yiu Yiu
listens to him talk about his misfortune in love (as both his beloveds have been
killed, and both because of him). The burning charisma of CYF shows beneath the
silly clothes and hair (and the weary demeanor he carries throughout the film) as
he steels himself against the simple love that Yiu Yiu offers him, and his suffering
at both disappointing her and himself makes for a very touching few moments.
The final scenes inside the Taiwanese casino are very reminiscent of the first
God of Gamblers film and, even though there are a few silly touches which
almost manage to destroy the mood (the "frowny face" on the gaming table at the break
wasn't as much amusing as just stupid) the power of CYF as Du Shen comes through in
these sequences. Thank goodness.
If you are looking for the further adventures of the Du Shen of the original film, this
probably isn't a film you really want to see. If you enjoy CYF in anything, you'll like
this one. If you are ready to look upon this as a separate film, you will probably
enjoy watching as long as you don't refer back to the greatness of the original
too much.
There is a lot of continuity lack, plot holes and some just sloppy camerawork afoot
here, but it's still watchable. This is another one of those DVDs which has permanent
subtitles which is exceedingly annoying, but they are readable for the most part (though
not always sensical). Try to get this one on sale.
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