God of Gamblers (1989)

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

.Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

This movie contains one of Chow Yun-Fat's signature roles, where he plays super gambler Ko Chun, who possesses supernatural abilities during his card playing and has earned the nickname of "God of Gamblers." He was involved in an accident that resulted in him having partial memory loss and forgetting his title as the legendary "God of Gamblers." But, he inadvertently ends up showcasing his supernatural powers to street hustler Michael Chan (Andy Lau), who takes him in after his accident.This movie has a little bit of a lot of things including action, humor, gambling, and the supernatural. The actors, which also includes Joey Wang, Charles Heung, Sharla Cheung, and Fui-On Shing, gave us quite a movie with a good balance of drama and comedy that made the film fast-paced for much of the film.From Ko Chun blowing everybody away with his gambling abilities to the development friendship between him and Andy Lau and Joey Wang's characters, the God of Gamblers will definitely remain one of the most iconic movies in Hong Kong cinema and has spawned several sequels and some nonsensical knock-offs, and even inspired the role that launched Stephen Chow's stardom - The Saint of Gamblers.Overall, it's an entertaining movie with Chow Yun-Fat at one of his best! Grade A-

One of Wong Jing's better directorial efforts, GOD OF GAMBLERS sees man-of-the-moment Chow Yun Fat playing an ultra-slick gangster/gambler who has a kind of supernatural ability to win at gambling. His activities soon bring him into contact with small-time crook Andy Lau, and after a bout of amnesia he finds himself caught up in a completely unpredictable adventure.GOD OF GAMBLERS is a bit of an odd movie, plot-wise. Part of it feels like a slick John Woo thriller, complete with a lengthy and violent shoot-out in a multi-storey car park which wouldn't be out of place in the likes of THE KILLER. The other part of it is a more traditional Hong Kong comedy, a bit like the Jackie/Sammo flick HEART OF THE DRAGON, with some low brow humour and lots of situational stuff mixed in.I have to say that I found the amnesia sub-plot to be overlong; it dragged the pacing of the film down as a whole, so my favourite parts were the first and final thirds. Saying that, it's still a pretty good little movie, with strong acting from Yun Fat and Lau, who make a good tag-team. The best bits are inevitably the stylish gambling sequences, which are funny and exciting in equal measure, filled with neat twists and some wonderful card tricks. Given this film's success at the box office, numerous sequels followed.

Under appreciated as an actor in the west, Chow Yun Fat shows his incredible versatility as a performer in this Hong Kong comedy/drama.Chow stars as Ko Chun a gifted gambler with an almost supernatural gift for gaming, hence his exalted title. Ko Chun is suave and sophisticated, master of his gaming, monetarily successful and confident in his abilities. This makes him enemies among not only opponents, but as it turns out, his allies.Having narrowly escaped an assassination attempt, Ko Chun unwittingly walks into a trap set by Knife, a young gambler wannabe who hankers after a big score. Knife meant to teach someone else a lesson by sabotaging a trail near his home,instead, Ko Chun is the victim. Finding the head injured gambler, Knife and his family take him in and nurse him back to health, not realizing who has literally tumbled into their lives.Ko Chun awakens from his trauma with no memory and regressed to a childlike demeanor. He's an appealing manchild with an insatiable hunger for a particular brand of chocolate (one carry-over from his former life), and as Knife and Co. find out, a talent for gambling. Knife and his crew make good use of their new friend's abilities--becoming upwardly mobile thanks to "Chocolate"--the nickname they bestow upon him, knowing no other.Chow Yun Fat has never been more endearing and charming as the brain injured "Chocolate". Chow makes believable and incredibly touching this dramatic transformation from genius to idiot savant. Viewers may find themselves wishing to protect Chocolate from a world he no longer understands and which is by turns baffling and inhospitable. Knife and his crew come to love and protect their friend, mortgaging all they have to provide him with a surgery that might restore his sensibilities.Their Chocolate-aided success brings unwanted attention, which leads to pursuit, kidnapping, ransom and gunplay. Further trauma to poor Chocolate follows which leads to a showdown that highlights the God of Gamblers uncanny ability to win, even when opponents cheat and "friends" betray. While Chow Yun Fat's impressive talent and charisma are at the heart and soul of this film, the supporting players are excellent, especially Andy Lau and Joey Wong.A must see and a must own for any Chow Yun Fat fan! In DVD versions of this film the subtitle problems noted in other reviews can be overcome by using the zoom feature on the remote. By slightly shrinking the image and adjusting it upward on the screen, the English subtitles will be perfectly visible and readable 99% of the time. Note:The DVD version of the film is edited, with several original scenes cut that track the ascendency of Knife and Co., and one pretty major plot point that would clarify the denouement at the film's end. VCD versions which are unedited can be sometimes found, but the subtitle problem reasserts itself--VCDs cannot be adjusted to compensate for the problem. But for anyone who has seen the DVD and has the general plot and dialogue down, the search for the unedited VCD version is worthwhile.

Do you play the gamble?While the British release is marred by terrible subtitles, this is still a great film. It isn't John Woo-style action all the way, but has so cool gambling, and John Woo playing a character who isn't just an action hero, but becomes an idiot, obsessed with chocolate.And, regardless of everything else, the entire film is made near-perfect by the character of Dragon, the bodyguard of the God of Gamblers. He's the man we all would like to be.If you like gambling, Honk Kong movies, or Chow Yun Fat, give it a try... you may like it...