StoryLine: Despite its title, theres rarely a fantastic moment in the film, the swimming pool featured only in a small handful of scenes including one really out of this world computer generated effects extravaganza that was really out of place, and in reality having not too many babes in the film So I guess thats three strikes against what its trying to sell, and it just goes to show that writer director Jeff Lau does blow hot and cold, especially the latter for this film when it had to sit in limbo for two years while waiting for main lead Gillian Chungs scandal to blow over But I suppose it didnt matter While Hong Kong comedies can afford to have no coherent narrative and can sprawl all over the place, I think Jeff Laus effort here really takes the cake and can probably be archived to film schools as how one should never make a film Putting together an eye candy cast does not make a hit, especially when theres hardly a semblance of a story As a comedy the jokes mostly fell flat, as a romance the leads share little chemistry, and one can only wonder what the director had wanted to achieve out of this, other than pay homage to Cheung Chau, one of Hong Kongs outlying islands Simply put, it tells the story of Gillian Chung, a native of Cheung Chau, who believes that she has had an encounter with a deity, and is granted supernatural powers The first few minutes of the film tries to establish this fact in a really unfunny sequence, after she gets into trouble with a rival who had sown the seed of jealousy, and as revenge, she wants to go one up against her in a hastily organized 4 x 100m swimming relay Embroiled into the mix is the swim king of Asia, Chi Alex Fong, who gets kidnapped by Gillian and her gang so as to learn some swimming techniques from him, to his reluctance of course, since hes a captive against his will Dont expect a Waterboys equivalent, or a typical Japanese zero to hero story, because this film is just not that Theres little focus on the swimming aspects, so any thoughts of a training montage gets thrown out of the window after an obligatory one Instead, Jeff Lau tries to explore the various characters and their motivations, from the romantic to the ethical, drawing broad strokes in insinuating that city dwellers are always scheming to make money, and have absolutely zero morals in that singular pursuit, while the village people are sincere, honest and trustworthy Between the two lead characters in Gillian and Chi, the theme of hypocritical behaviour get broached, but only barely, while leaving the rest of the characters in support mode, without clear direction other than to be fodder for anything the writerdirector so decides Comedy wise, this is probably one of Jeff Laus weakest offering, since the jokes are nary funny, and relied on gimmicky aspects already exploited to death in the hey days of Hong Kong comedy cinema Dont expect any laugh a minute, and worse, some of these perceived comical aspects just made the storyline even more incoherent with fantastical elements thrown in that more often than not, backfire Perhaps the only saving grace is Stephen Fungs character, whose sole appearance alone in drag will elicit much needed laughter, because his limited cameo in earlier scenes were just plain scenery, or an improvised Mahjong scene that I thought would have been better had the language of the film shown here be in its original Cantonese track Like Sniper, this is one film thats a blast from the past that had to await until audience sentiments of the scandal blows over, before making a cinema debut After all, some costs recouped is better than none at all, so dont go to this expecting to see something rip roaring funny
Batsh*t Bride (2019)
On April Fools Day, just before her wedding, a bride pranks her fiance by saying that she thinks that theyve lost that spark and that they should call off the wedding and break up, only to discover that he feels the exact same way
Curse of the Stone Hand (1965)
Compilation of two Chilean titles, the first adapted from Robert Louis Stevensons The Suicide Club, the second the tale of younger siblings dominated by their evil elder brother
Carmen, Baby (1967)
A sexy temptress no man can resist and a local police officer who falls hard for her become embroiled in a complicated intrigue of passion and jealousy in Radley Metzgers boldly original erotic update of the opera Carmen
The Lost Moment (1947)
A publisher insinuates himself into the mouldering mansion of the centenarian lover of a renowned but long dead poet to find his lost love letters
Carry on Behind (1975)
Professors Vooshka and Crump decide to visit an archaeological site to study the artifacts there Lo and behold, its right next to a caravan site where all manner of people are staying With a randy Major owning the site, a snobbish
My Life as a Zucchini (2016)
After losing his mother, a young boy is sent to a foster home with other orphans his age where he begins to learn the meaning of trust and true love
Tintorera: Killer Shark (1977)
Two shark hunters flirt with an attractive British lady while hunting down a large tiger shark terrorizing the Mexican East coast
Hurt by Paradise (2019)
A film about a poet and a girl with big hair Together they find friendship as the possibility of their dreams dwindles
After the End (2020)
The world has been left in ruins following the outbreak of a terrifying disease Deep in the Australian countryside, a group of survivors are locked in a constant struggle to stay alive After a savage battle against a rival group, t
The View from Here (2017)
The true story of a Hawaiian princess attempts to maintain the independence of the island against the threat of American colonization
Bangkok Dog (2024)
The story focuses on an American agent sent to a dangerous undercover mission in Thailand to dismantle a sadistic crime lord
The Secret Lives of College Freshmen (2021)
A college freshman moves into the perfect dorm on campus, but soon discovers the previous resident died under mysterious circumstances Believing the girl was murdered, she tries to uncover the identity of the killer before its t
Spies Strike Silently (1966)
A young blonde Jane Freeman is found dead in the pool She turns out to be a daughter of Professor Freeman who has been told his daughter will die unless he gives up his research
First Love (2019)
A young boxer and a call girl get caught up in a drug smuggling scheme over the course of one night in Tokyo