One of the very first Cinema City productions, founders Raymond Wong (writer), Karl Maka (actor) and Dean Shek (actor) indeed are at the forefront trying to make their production company take flight. Their various detours into action (the A Better Tomorrow movies for instance) may have made their name later but the local comedy has its fair share to recommend about them and the Wu Ma directed Beware Of Pickpockets surprises. Dean Shek is a good hearted pickpocket who tries to make bad guys lives miserable instead but the law (represented by Karl Maka and Wu Ma) is still after him. Running an orphanage also and teaching them the more kind principles of the pickpocket trade, these resourceful kids are going to play a crucial part in the various musical numbers and slapstick that ensues. Especially when actual thugs come onto the scene...

Dean Shek may look like he's up to his usual over the top antics but in actuality, we're seeing a much more toned down version here. Essentially all the post dubbed high pitched sounds are gone and in fact, Shek makes for an effective conveyer of dishing out painful slapstick as well as receiving. It's one of his funniest performances. Various skits include the kids trying to get him a girlfriend, a drunk judge sentencing Karl Maka to prison and awarding a good citizen award to Shek instead and Hitler gets mentioned 10 times in regards to a dog etc. But the tour de force is an epic slapstick sequence where Shek and kids take on the thugs. Physical pain and undercranking is a center pillar but the energy and timing is usually spot on. Credit Wu Ma for keeping Shek in check and delivering a valuable addition to Cinema City.

Attacked and now possessed by a snake devil, a woman (Chui Ging-Sin) and her surroundings now seek help to break the spell...

Low-budget and set bound Taiwanese horror quickie that satisfies on very minute levels. Basically either filmed in the forest or in one house, various low-fi transformations and gore represents the only brief fun you can find plus the special effects ending is lively enough to not fall asleep in front of. Certainly was an opportunity somewhere in there to be a little bit more dramatic with the possession plot that us similar to the The Wolf Man but Bewitched Area Of Thousand Years concerns itself with little of that, not even nailing the drama on a soap opera level. Also starring Lung Tien-Hsiang (The Flag Of Iron) and Ku Feng appears briefly.

Jacob Cheung portrays the importance of mending broken relationships while also celebrating the life spirit, all through the eyes of a older mother (Fung Bo Bo). First, she has to come to terms with her daughter (Cecilia Yip) who has run off abroad and into a marriage lacking of blessing from the mother's side. Director Cheung surprises us by dealing and clearing out this matter quickly and instead Beyond The Sunset becomes a sweet, good old romance, with the emphasis on old as Fung Bo Bo and Richard Ng's characters begin to bond. Much of the material and its themes are bashed over the viewer's head but not only is it affecting, Cheung still actually manages to make the proceedings retain a subtlety. There are valid complaints to be directed towards the young actor playing Cecilia Yip's kid but the overall effect of the film is pleasing thanks to down to earth and warm performances with a suitably static direction. Lowell Lo co-stars in a part dopey, part dramatic performance, an oddity coming from this walking visual gag of an actor/composer.

Beyond The Sunset ended up taking home the Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Actress (Cecilia Yip) statuettes at the Hong Kong Film Awards.

Two loyal, lowly brothers (Wong played by Chen Kuan-Tai and Cheung, Jimmy Lung billed here as Jimmy Lee and playing it only mildly psychotic compared to later roles) start from the bottom but after committing a murder they are forced to flee to Shanghai where their brief trek onto the gangster path prior, takes full flight. It also draws the brothers apart...

Nothing too surprising about Chen Kuan-Tai's story here as the two country bumpkins become part of the high class, early 1900s Shanghai. Wong remains loyal to his Chinese side as much as he can while Cheung looks for the riches and glamour the Western side of the city offer up. Although touching upon France and England leasing territories as well as opium- and ammo smuggling, these are only elements that in a highly basic way carry Chen Kuan-Tai's direction to each respective fight scene. Because nothing of the affecting kind can be found in Wong and Cheung's story. The bashing and fair intricacy in the various fights has its fair amount of standout moments though and the brutal finale involving acid is well worth the trip you have to take with Big Boss Of Shanghai. Also with Chan Sing and Cheng Hong-Yip.

KENNETH'S REVIEW: Also known as Dragon The Master 2, when you're exploiting, exploit from the beginning. Joseph Lai however continues to "develop" his idea of Bruceploitation for the new millennium, by going shot on video on us. Dragon Sek returns as our copy of the piece, showcasing a decent knack for charisma and the requisite Bruce Lee-moves but unlike Dragon The Master that scored hokey points in a boring frame, director Kant Leung (the hack behind Chinese Midnight Express II) delivers a fairly slick, yet inept and boring frame. Although minute basic storytelling was never something you could count on getting out of a flick with Joseph Lai's name on it, Big Boss Untouchable, with some minor hints at being a remake of The Big Boss, struggles to make any identity for itself. Once you get used to the fight action in this particular format, you also quickly realize it wanders between seeming like a fight exhibition to downright poor with zero impact. Former Category III baddies Ben Ng, Karel Wong appears as well as Karen Cheung (Dragon Sek's co-star in Dragon The Master).

Triad boss Way (Alex Man) has served his prison sentence but demoted in the ranks and trying to live life redeeming his crimes obviously isn't going to be easy. Especially not with a hateful brother (Hugo Ng), a vengeful cop (Lam Chung) and a power hungry new big brother (Kirk Wong) to deal with...

Clifford Choi (Naughty Couple) may not bring anything new to the table as he walks through the character types (including the often used stupid ass triads and Carrie Ng cast as a cop doesn't ring true of believability one bit either). Alex Man certainly isn't doing anything different either, in a genre he found himself in often. There is a section however, showing Way's degradation, that holds a raw emotional power that lifts Big Brother ever so slightly and within the cheap frame there continues to be some minor things done right thanks to the quality initially showed a few reels in. Kirk Wong co-stars in a typical, over the top turn while Phillip Chan and Phillip Ko appear briefly.

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KENNETH'S REVIEW: The beach has people sitting on the toilet, their living rooms planted there, tables of mahjong with birds and short people are officially deemed tall so what kind of surreal nonsense is going on pre-credits in The Big Deal? Well, director Wong Jan-Yeung (Dreaming The Reality) seems very little interested in any reality or sense of giving the world another girls with guns flick. No, he lets a bomb of pure silliness and nonsense far removed from Wong Jing (meaning better) and Stephen Chow (meaning not as good) explode, that has to be seen to be believed. Moon Lee and Yukari Oshima are modern Robin Hood's of sorts, called Saint Heroes. Never hesitating to wield guns, cop Super Canon (Sibelle Hu) and Lethal Weapon (Tommy Wong, whose character they employ instead of the Ghostbusters, Bruce Lee and Mel Gibson....yep, he's low on the list) are the cops on their trail while also the leader of a gang within the Thief Tribe played by Yuen Wah in a number of creative costumes, raises hell. Sounds straight but with almost a full feature of laugh out loud, inappropriate and wild humour, The Big Deal is for a fan with no sensitivity, that's for sure. The fast action plays well into the structure and amongst several highlights you'll also find Saint Heroes master (Yuen Cheung-Yan, also action director) trying out bullet proof vests with a rocket launcher, hopping vampires hopping about like it's an everyday occurrence, master fighters engaging in silly wrestling tactics, banana peel jokes, a dildo walkie talkie and Tommy Wong encountering countless look-alike's of his, on the other side of the law. And everybody is so on board to lampoon themselves, it all makes The Big Deal a fine curiosity for fans of our action players. Wong Fung (crazy in just about every scene) also appears.

This action/comedy/gambling brew from Wong Jing is definitely on the broader side of the genre spectrum as expected but he manages to put the contrasts suitably close to each other by the end. In the opening we see Ma Qun (Anthony Wong) succeed at an undercover mission to bring down Panther Wong (Jimmy Lung Fong, not the nastiest bad guy in the film believe it or not). Despite succeeding, Panther has two assassins to go after Ma Qun and his wife, resulting in acid down the throat, shot kneecaps, blindness and a raped, dead wife. Fellow cop Kung Ching (Danny Lee) won't stand for this and gets suspended after beating up a superior. But the crippled Ma Qun wants revenge and Kung Ching teams up with Soft (Wong Jing), a master gambler with an ace up his sleeve in many, many situations. Going undercover as an American triad, Kung Ching first decides to piss off Panther by going after his desired flesh in the form of Penny (Joey Wong)...

As you can tell, it's equal nastiness, comedy, card- and mahjong playing with a twist of action mayhem Danny Lee often participates in so it's Wong Jing utilizing each talent if you will. While the odd couple pairing and plot coherency doesn't register particularly high, Wong Jing manages to keep his lighter matters unforced for once, even scoring high on at least two gags (often involving the resourceful character he plays). The 90s heroic bloodshed in the wake of more successful effort of its kind isn't high division stuff but we're awake when Wong takes dark and gory turns with his violence. Aspects that doesn't fit as well with the tone changes but when much of the expected aggravation doesn't happen, something is up in a Wong Jing movie. Word of the moment being up. Sheren Tang appears in support as the blind sister of Danny Lee's character.

The technical ambition on behalf of D&B and director Stephen Shin is admirable but closing in on the disaster that was Black Cat (and what ultimately sank the company), A Bite Of Love shooting in synch sound, in the UK and mixed in Dolby signals sad things, to come. It would be slightly different if the final film had transcended its genre much more of course. Hong Kong cinema plank George Lam plays Duke Lee, a rather kind hearted vampire that lives his life at night, with certain folks thinking he's a magician, including Anna (Rosamund Kwan) that he falls in love with. On the horizon is her brother (Norman Tsui), a heroin dealer sick to the degree that he needs constant blood transfusions...

Ticking of the lightheartedness (represented by little Jeng Paak-Lam who I'm not sure has a reason to be in this film and Hui Siu-Hung as Duke's servant), the supposed felt and tragic romance combined with tension, technical merits are fair and with a more pronounced horror mode dominating the second half, A Bite Of Love flows better. Special it ain't though, even though Norman Tsui is memorable in a bad guy role he can literally sink his teeth into.