What are your thoughts on Stephen Chow Sing Chi?

[dionbrother]

I think he's fantastic. Been following his career since seeing GOD OF GAMBLERS 2 in SF's Chinatown nearly 20 years ago. He made plenty of junk as well, but being prolific in the 90s will do that. I think he's currently one of the best directors in the world, and does something nobody in the US bothers with: makes visually striking comedies. He's got a great cinematic eye, and its too bad he ain't directing the Green Hornet.

[Guest maskedavenger]

He used to be great but he has watered down his comedy to pander to western audiences. 'Tis a shame really.

[dionbrother]

Disagree. KUNG FU HUSTLE is arguably his best movie. He's got the budgets to do what he always wanted to, but Wong Jing never gave him the freedom or credit. CJ7 was overlooked but definitely his most personal movie to date.

[Guest Markgway]

In English the strongest swear word is 'cunt'

What's the Cantonese equivilent?

[GoldenFist]

He's too amazing!

[gravedigger666]

I am not into kung-fu comedy...Shaolin soccer is crap, very boring.Much beloved Kung-fu hustle was okay, nothing spectacular but easy to watch.Some others I have seen were below average.But recently I did check king of beggars and that was quality item, comedy was on background and what there was, was nicely soft and cool.Excellent movie.I have from beijing with love to watch next.

[Secret Executioner]

Very overrated. Don't get all the fuzz around this guy. The so-called masterpiece known as Shaolin Soccer is meh at best.

[masterofoneinchpunch]

He is one of my favorite Hong Kong comedians. He has so many facets to his films (even when he is not directing) that it is more than just verbal humor. His site gags and especially his "nonsense" humor come off as brilliant as he will throw everything in from John Woo references, American films (including cartoons), local news, and heck everything including the kitchen sink. He has a tendency for going overboard (bigger is not always better) but there are so many moments in so many films I have found hilarious.

[AlbertV]

Very overrated. Don't get all the fuzz around this guy. The so-called masterpiece known as Shaolin Soccer is meh at best.

You should check out some of his earlier films. Fist of Fury 1991 is one of my favorites, as I learned that Corey Yuen choreographed virtually the same final fight here and in Seasonal Films' American Shaolin. But there is a nice nod to Fist of Fury but he plays a country bumpkin with a powerful right fist (and makes a cameo as his Saint of Gamblers character from God of Gamblers II which I found quite funny).

Tricky Brains and God of Gamblers II are two of my personal favorites because at that time, the chemistry between Chow and Andy Lau worked quite well.

The Chinese Odyssey Films are where he played the Monkey King and his reincarnation troublemaker Joker. Part 2 had Law Kar-Ying (whom I call the "what the f*&k" guy from Stephen Fung's first two films) singing "Only You", which I found hysterical.

Tricky Master was sort of a "pass the torch" film as he was ready to leave the "gambling comedy film" and pass the torch to a pre-awesome Nick Cheung. Chow fights Ken Lo and he does in it Bruce Lee-fashion.

[DiP]

The last great HK film comedian. He gave something new to HK comedies when the Hui Bros started to fade away.

[FrankBolte]

I didnt see anyone mentioning King of comedy..that one had me in stitches...

specially the scene when he shows his different emotions in acting... great movie...

[Casshern]

He is a genius, I rate him above many american comedians which are most of the time very lame. What I like the most about him is that he knows poverty very well and find the most hilarious things in it.

He is very genuine and his humor feels a lot closer to me, It's very strange, his characters are very human. He is also a great actor.

[KenHashibe]

I love Stephen Chow movies! I've seen almost every Chow movie worth watching (and a few that aren't). I'd definitely recommend Fight Back to School, King of Comedy, Love on Delivery, From Beijing With Love, God of Cookery, and All For the Winner. Flirting Scholar and King of Beggars are great for kung fu movie fans. A Chinese Odyssey and Royal Tramp are both fantastic, especially if you can understand what's going on. I wouldn't really recommend Sixty Million Dollar Man, though it does have its moments.

[ShaOW!linDude]

Flirting Scholar and King of Beggars are great for kung fu movie fans. A Chinese Odyssey and Royal Tramp are both fantastic, especially if you can understand what's going on.

I absolutely hated Royal Tramp, but I have King of Beggars in my queue on Netflix so that's good to know.

[KenHashibe]

I absolutely hated Royal Tramp, but I have King of Beggars in my queue on Netflix so that's good to know.

I know some other people who didn't like Royal Tramp either. A lot of the movie is inaccessible to non-HK audiences, but I personally enjoyed it. On the other hand, King of Beggars is one of Chow's most accessible films. It's definitely not his funniest, but it's still a lot of fun, especially if you don't mind wires. There are a lot of them. Let me know how you like it.

[ShaOW!linDude]

I know some other people who didn't like Royal Tramp either. A lot of the movie is inaccessible to non-HK audiences, but I personally enjoyed it. On the other hand, King of Beggars is one of Chow's most accessible films. It's definitely not his funniest, but it's still a lot of fun, especially if you don't mind wires. There are a lot of them. Let me know how you like it.

Well, crap. I do mind them. Depends on how they're used. Sigh. Guess we'll see.

It's not that I didn't find Royal Tramp inaccessible. I just was bored out of my mind by it. I get Chinese humor for the most part. (At least I think I do after being exposed to it for so many years.) I just didn't think it was all that funny, and I think I remember there being an almost complete lack of action, wire or otherwise.

[KenHashibe]

Well, crap. I do mind them. Depends on how they're used. Sigh. Guess we'll see.

Well, there aren't as many wires in King of Beggars as your typical Ching Siu Tung movie, but there are still a few wires throughout. I was surprised that most of the action (keyword: most) was on the ground, but there's a fair share of wires, mostly at the end.

All For The Winner and Fight Back To School have a few great action highlights with either no use/minimal use of wires. Both are pretty good too. AFTW, in particular, is very funny.

[ShaOW!linDude]

Good to know. Cool beans. Thanks, KH.

[One Armed Boxer]

Very overrated. Don't get all the fuzz around this guy. The so-called masterpiece known as Shaolin Soccer is meh at best.

Hey GHW, just curious to know was 'Shaolin Soccer' your first taste of Stephen Chow? It was for me, and like you I wasn't particularly impressed and wondered what all the fuss was about. However having now delved into his back catalogue, mostly from the 90's, I can definitely see why he's considered a comedic genius.

If you haven't checked them out I'd strongly recommend watching a lot of what's already been mentioned here - 'Fist of Fury 1991', 'Love On Delivery', 'Fight Back to School', 'God of Cookery', 'King of Comedy', 'Chinese Odyssey' - they're all very funny and are pretty much guaranteed to give you a laugh.

His last movie, 'Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons', is also highly recommended as well, much better than 'The Monkey King' which was released the same year.

[Cognoscente]

On 12/21/2014 at 1:19 AM, KenHashibe said:

I love Stephen Chow movies! I've seen almost every Chow movie worth watching (and a few that aren't). I'd definitely recommend Fight Back to School, King of Comedy, Love on Delivery, From Beijing With Love, God of Cookery, and All For the Winner. Flirting Scholar and King of Beggars are great for Kung Fu movie fans. A Chinese Odyssey and Royal Tramp are both fantastic, especially if you can understand what's going on. I wouldn't really recommend Sixty Million Dollar Man, though it does have its moments.

In Wong Jing's memoir, he had this to say about that movie: "Flirting Scholar was a very popular movie when it came out, but a discerning eye will inform you that it's Stephen who was the true director instead of Lee Lik-Chi. All you have to do is take a glance at the movies that Lee later did for me – Tricky Business and Lucky Guy. He is a mediocre director. Tricky Business, in particular, is the worst of the seven movies that Lau Ching-Wan and Anita Yuen had starred in together. Killing Me Tenderly, Lee's remake of Kevin Costner's The Bodyguard, is no match for Jet Li’s The Bodyguard from Beijing. When I released Future Cops, there was a sceptical consensus that his Wynners movie would be more successful because the movie star ratio was in his favour, five versus four stars. However, The Tigers – The Legend of Canton was such a flop that it was the last time that they did a Beatles-style movie. It was a true death knell."