San shi nian xi shuo cong tou (1982)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Han Hsiang Li

Cast

Erik Chan Ka Kei
Shen Chan	...	Fa Hai
Nan Chiang
Ngai Hung Chik
Miao Ching
Tat-wah Cho
Linda Chu
Wong Chun
Ging Man Fung
Biu Gam
Feng Ku
Siu-Kwan Lau
Din Hing Lee
Han Hsiang Li
Ke Ming Lin
Yang Yang Lin
Peng-fei Li
Tony Liu
Helen Poon		(as Bin Seung Poon)
Lao Shen
Yam Yam Siu
Liang Chun Tai
Choh Lam Tsang
Han Chen Wang
Lai Wang
Hang-Sheng Wu
Chih-Ching Yang
Bun Yuen
Tak Yuen	...	Stunt double for actress
Wah Yuen	...	Policeman

Also Known As:

Passing Flickers (International: English title)
Saam sap nin sai suet chung tau (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin | Cantonese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Shaw Brothers

A must for Shaw fans others may be less impressed

Flawed yet fascinating, Passing Flickers' main selling point will be to those who enjoy all those big colourful Shawscope productions of the 70's, a studio with huge success, notably in costume drama and kung fu epics, and with an as-distinctive house style as Hammer's. Despite optimistic comparisons on the DVD box to Fellini's 8 ½ and Truffaut's Day for Night, it is probably closer in spirit to a 'Carry on Filming'. That's not to say that there's a lot to enjoy here, but high art it is not. Supposedly based on the anecdotal reminiscences of an actor turned film critic, (brief extracts of his career in black and white movies appear at the start), Li's work betrays its origins by being rather a scrappy film, put together rather carelessly, and which finishes all too abruptly. The main characters - the arrogant, harassed director (who predictably has a personal assistant, just to place his chair), the sexy starlet (secretly gawped at by stage hands as she strips for make up), or naïve actors (unable to remember lines, duped into making fools of themselves on set) are familiar enough stereotypes. Along the way however, there is some fun to be had as more humorous incidents occur on the sound stage, together with dashes of nudity. Some of the events are presumably inspired by real life experiences, others have a distinct air of wishful fabrication. The over-the-top Kung Fu star, deserted by director and crew as he goes through his pointless extended routine, for instance. Or the action heroes, sweating in furs while they dutifully munch through their meal scene, 'snow' falling outside in studio land. Most impressive of all is the raucous mounting of a full lightning, wind and rain sequence on the sound stage, a forceful reminder of how rich in the art department contemporary productions could be.

In scenes like these, Passing Flickers gives a tantalising flavour of the times and allows us to glimpse the unique atmosphere of a great studio. Seeing behind the wire work and trampoline work utilised in a fight scenes, how lightning is made (with special arc lamps) or exploring the rich sets so characteristic of the Shaw Brothers output, make the weaknesses elsewhere worth sitting through. Undoubtedly, those who have seen the most productions of the period will be the quickest to spot the parodies on offer. Even so, one can't help sighing that, with a bit more thought in the script, as well as the tightening up of some of the weaker gags, this film would have been so much better. Newly re-mastered for DVD as part of the gradual reissue of the entire Shaw Brothers back catalogue (over 700 films!) Passing Flickers is worth contemplating, and a must for those who still run to the world of Sir Run Run.