| |
Sammo
and Meng play two of Hong Kong's unluckiest hustlers in search of
a short cut to the easy life, much to the disapproval of Sammo's
father. But the real problems begin when beautiful car thief Nina
Li Chi gets them fired from their jobs and fall foul of a triad
gang. They take Meng hostage and Sammo, his father, and the ghost
of his grandfather (all played by Sammo) must stage a rescue.
This film is quite similar to 'Where's Officer Tuba?' and it was
made around the same period. It also uses some of the same locations
as that film and contains about the same amount of fighting. What
really sets this apart though, is Sammo playing three generations
- each character displays considerable gusto and Sammo is obviously
having good fun playing them. The plot is purely played for laughs
and again this is clearly a piece of no-brainer entertainment. The
comedy never lets up and the first half of the film in jam packed
with very funny jokes. The second half does not fare so well as
a sub plot is brought in, in order to gauge an end fight. Sammo
regular Meng Hoi gets a bigger part here than usual but unfortunately
doesn't do much fighting. What he does do though, is take quite
a severe beating and really throws himself around showcasing his
stuntman skills brilliantly. The end confrontation is very reminiscent
of 'Pedicab Driver' and just when you think 'young' Sammo can fight
no more the older generation Sammo turns up and gives one of the
best displays of traditional handwork ever. It's worth the admission
price just for this short scene!
I really like this film and for pure entertainment 'Gambling Ghost'
is one of Sammo's best. It is clearly a cut-price production but
there is enough going on to keep your interest. Probably Sammo's
most care free fun film with all of Sammo's regulars (Wu Ma, Richard
Ng, Billy Chow etc.) present and correct.
|
|
