From Beijing with Love (1994)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Good start, but then it gets ruined

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

I am amazed about the fairly high ratings this rather boring picture got. As far as James Bond spoofs go this one is forgettable. It suffers partly from being a JB parody - JB is in itself a parody - and more from an uneven script which can't decide if the main hero is a kind of Uber James Bond (with knives) OR kind of stumbling wannabee (Get Smart, Austin Powers).The suits remember more (bad taste) gangsters of the 70s than Secret Agent "dressed to kill"-code. For better spoofs from Hong Kong try "Magnificent Warriors" (Indy Jones "coveress").Rating 3.5/10

Caught this on DVD the other day...and I was laughing and smiling until the shopping mall sequence...where it abruptly shifted gears and positively reveled in cruelty and heartbreak...and then went back to being a goofy(but still blood-soaked) spoof. Well , I guess that 's part of the craziness of Hong Kong cinema that we all love....and I'm still smiling about the hilarious weapons and gadgets...the "solar flashlight" is priceless. Well worth seeing. Bond fans will love the riotous imitation of Maurice Binder's main title visuals...opening action sequence is as good as anything you'd see in a Bond film and Anita Yuen makes an adorable foil/adversary/partner for Chow. (But as I said, it is pure Stephen Chow nutball fun...like the guys who made "Shaun Of The Dead" and "Hot Fuzz", Chow takes no prisoners when he's out to bend a genre inside out and backwards.)

I have watched this movie on cable television re-runs several times and is always amused by the comedy. I have a high humour threshold and have to admit that 'From Bejing With Love' meets my expectations.The living room scene where Siu Kam (played by Anita Yuen) tries to shoot Ling Ling Chai (played by Stephen Chow) is extremely funny. She was greeted by a reverse shot by the gun. Ling Ling Chai heard the gunshot and turns around to explain to her that the gun shoots the opposite direction. While Ling Ling Chai is testing the gun's silencer, Siu Kam points the gun towards herself and shoots Ling Ling Chai again. To our surprise, she gets shot again. Ling Ling Chai explains that the gun's bullet alternates every shot. Looking defeated and injured, Siu Kam runs comically into the toilet with both her arms badly wounded.Another scene worth mentioning is when Ling Ling Chai enters the bathroom while Siu Kam is wrapped in a towel. Ling Ling Chai with a smoking pipe and two iron balls resting on his palm, looks cool. (In the early days of Chinese gangsterism, a stereotyped powerful boss usually rotates two iron balls on a palm.) The angry Siu Kam tells him to close the bathroom door. Ling Ling Chai closes the door but he is still inside the bathroom. Siu Kam shouts him to get out and close the door.Towards the end of the movie, Ling Ling Chai was in a party function and tries to take a glass of wine from the waiter's platter. However someone took it before he has the chance. Then Ling Ling Chai and the waiter looks at the platter, waiting for a miracle to happen. This is actually a parody of the famous Guinness beer commercial endorsed by George Lam.Made in 1994, this movie is still a classic. With several notable comical 'nonsense' scenes and the funny scene of 'extinguish cigarette butt on a hand' that was repeated in Shaolin Soccer (2001).Mao points: 9/10

Standard comedy about a wannabe spy who gets double crossed by his boss, except hes got a chopper (butcher knife) and knows how to use it!The plot is pretty thin, but this is still a funny movie, as are most of Chow's movies. Be sure to add this to any Stephen Chow marathons you might be hosting, otherwise, you can miss this one for another of his better films.