As throwaway as your average Kleenex, this ultra-light
comedy from writer-director Matt Chow is amiable enough
for a time-waster. However, if you choose to pay actual
attention to this flick you may waste away from boredom
and/or lack of any intellectual stimulus.
Commerical Radio DJ Sammy
Leung is the ironically-named Little Fish, who can't
swim and gets dumped by his girlfriend as a result.
His mom (ubiquitous Law Lan) signs him up for swimming
lessons with Anthony Wong, an oddball swim instructor
who never actually seems to get wet. His classmates
are the usual ragtag assortment of oddballs, including
the toupee-wearing Wyman Wong (who's a lot heavier than
he used to be), useless drunk Joe Lee, and babe du
jour Pace Wu.
Shtick ensues until some jerky
pro swimmers pick on Wyman's kid, and the necessary
challenge gets issued. Our heroes now have only one
month to learn how to swim - and swim well enough to
take on the pros in a 4x100 relay race.
Since this is a sports
movie, the usual clichés turn up. Our guys must
learn to swim, but there's also the obligatory personal
issues that need to be tied up, thus making the swim
to the winner's circle an easier one. In that department, United We Stand and Swim fails miserably, as
nothing that occurs is either compelling or reasonably
plausible.
The trials of the band of misfits are so
lightweight and frankly uninteresting that unintended
slumber may be induced. As such, we're left with the
other stuff to keep us occupied, like Anthony Wong's
bizarre but genial turn as the screwy swim instructor,
or the dubbed charms of the suitably pretty Pace Wu.
This isn't a good film at all,
but it's relatively harmless, so hating it would probably
by too extreme a response. However, seeking it out as
the centerpiece of your viewing evening would be a mistake
of untold proportions. (Kozo 2001/2002) |
