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No
Problem 2 |
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Year: |
2002 |
The strange cast of No Problem 2. |
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Director: |
Chin
Kar-Lok |
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Producer: |
Sam
Leung Tak-Sum |
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Cast: |
Takashi Okamura, Wakana Sakai, Yuen
Biao, Candy Lo Hau-Yam,
Sam Lee Chan-Sam, Won
Jin, Lai Yiu-Cheung,
Collin Chow Siu-Lung
(Ngai Sing), Shun Sugata, Law
Kar-Ying, Tats Lau Yi-Tat,
Johnny Tang
Siu-Cheun,
Eric Tsang Chi-Wai,
Jerry Lamb Hoi-Fung,
Chin Kar-Lok, Lee
San-San, Taguchi Hiromasa |
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The
Skinny: |
Despite
being a completely disposable experience, this Japanese-made
valentine to Hong Kong Cinema is actually a strangely fun
time. It's nice to see Yuen Biao again, and the various HK
Cinema parodies are good fun. No one will ever confuse this
with a good film, but longtime HK Cinema fans might experience
some welcome nostalgia. |
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Review: |
Because
nobody in Hong Kong will make a Hong Kong film, it falls upon
foreign stars and their heavy pocketbooks to bring the goods.
No Problem 2 is the sequel to (duh) No Problem 1,
which was a comedy vehicle for Japanese comedian Takashi Okamura.
This new film brings back Okamura as Kensuke Kimura, a screwy
waiter who loves HK movies and visits Hong Kong to check out
his beloved cinematic mecca. Then, in true action-comedy style,
he gets embroiled in a crime-syndicate kidnapping of a beautiful
heiress named Yumiko (Wakana Sakai). This is undoubtedly a
common occurence for most HK Cinema fans when they visit Hong
Kong.
Kensuke (or Ken for short) gets
embroiled in this mess thusly: he accidentally happens across
a hired killer named Invincible, who's scheduled to take care
of Yumiko at a jewelery show. Invincible was hired by evil
bastards Ngai Sing (AKA: Collin Chow) and Lai Yiu-Cheung at
the behest of their boss Kazuo Ota (Sugata Shun), who also
happens to be Yumiko's uncle. Thanks to a mistaken identity
plot device, Ken is mistaken for Invincible and is sent in
his place. Instead of killing Yumiko, he accidentally saves
her, and is assigned (along with cop Sam Lee) to safeguard
Yumiko while she's in Hong Kong.
However, Ken is more of an idiot
savant than a bodyguard, and as such is a bad choice for a
protector. Before you know it Yumiko has been taken by the
bad guys, and Ken is framed for crime. Thankfully, there's
Lam Gao (Yuen Biao) and his sister Lam Doi (Candy Lo), two
wacky martial artists who've been charged with finding and
subduing Invincible. They attempt to use Ken as bait to lure
out Invincible, but Ken just wants Yumiko back.
Meanwhile, Lam Doi gets the hots
for Ken, which may seem unbelievable to most HK Cinema fans
since comedian Okamura resembles a lower primate. Lam Doi
isn't such a prize herself since she has really bad teeth.
Portrayed by Candy Lo with prosthetic choppers, Lam Doi is
your standard "ugly girl in love" cliché.
Thankfully, Lo makes her both sympathetic and even winning,
which adds some weight to her otherwise uninteresting problem
of being an ugly girl in love with a guy who's in love with
someone else. Lo doesn't do much kung-fu (her stunt doubles
take care of that), but she's an engaging presence, and she
makes the part work.
Takashi Okamura's work is probably
foreign to most HK Cinema fans (this reviewer included), but
he's an amusing enough comedian. Sam Lee and a large contingent
of HK Cinema actors turn in standard support, with Collin
Chow (AKA: Ngai Sing) turning in a remarkably effective performance
as the evil bad guy du jour. Lead actress Wakana Sakai
is equally remarkable - except her performance is remarkably
bad. Not that it really matters, as this film was not intended
to be an acting showcase of any sort. It's just your typical
action-comedy filled with overacting and mugging for an indiscriminate
camera and/or audience.
So who cares about the
acting? Let's get right to the point: how's the action, and
how's Yuen Biao, dammit? The third "brother" of
Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung never reached the post-eighties
heights of the other two, but he's still a fun, engaging performer
who deserved far better than the Philippines-produced dreck
he was relegated to during the nineties. Here he turns in
an agile, funny performance as Lam Gao, who's been chasing
Invincible for years simply because his master asked him to.
Yuen has always possessed a fine comic charm, and he uses
it to good effect here. And despite being older, he handles
his fight sequences well.
The fighting itself isn't truly awe-inspiring,
but it isn't meant to be (this is a comedy, after all). HK
Cinema fans will probably be mildly satisfied by the fisticuffs,
but they should be delighted with the numerous movie parodies.
Asides to The Killer, Police Story, Crouching
Tiger Hidden Dragon, The Storm Riders and even The
Karate Kid (among others) litter the film, and the multitude
of HK actor cameos helps, too. Actor/director Chin Kar-Lok
(of the egregious '97 Aces Go Places) doesn't create
anything truly amazing or interesting here, but he does reference
enough old-time HK Cinema charm to make this a pleasant enough
time killer. Get this straight: this is not a good movie.
However, given the chance it can be an occasionally entertaining
bit of nostalgia. (Kozo 2002) |
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Notes: |
• This
is not a Hong Kong film. It's a Japanese film. Despite taking
place in Hong Kong and featuring a largely Hong Kong cast
and crew (including producer Sam Leung of The Stewardess),
it's obvious that Japanese wallets bankrolled this picture.
Besides, the Japanese are practically the only people left
on this planet who generally appreciate the wit and wisdom
of Yuen Biao. |
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Availability: |
DVD
(Hong Kong)
Region 3 NTSC
Universe Laser
Widescreen
Cantonese/Japananese and Mandarin Language Tracks
Removable English and Chinese Subtitles |
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image courtesy
of www.mov3.com
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| LoveHKFilm.com
Copyright ©2002-2017 Ross Chen
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