Reviews & Ratings for
Fight Back to School More at IMDbPro »Tao xue wei long (original title)

9 out of 9 people found the following review useful:
A funny movie, 6 October 2000

Author: GIB 01 from USA

Fight Back to School is a sometimes childish, but very funny movie that all ages can enjoy. Perhaps it can be compared to the Naked Gun, but less silly and more focused. The story concerns an officer named Star Chow who must go undercover as a student to recover a stolen gun. Not the brightest of people in terms of math and science, you can probably guess the type of comedy that follows. Much of the comedy looks like it belongs in a cartoon show, but it is all very well done and never seems out of place. In one scene, while taking a history exam, Star tries to cheat by using his cell phone to call his partner outside for answers. His partner calls the department and the comedy begins. The most "capable" of officers are called into a room in the department and frantically seach for the exam answers as Star's partner outside throws a banana up behind the class window to inform him that the answer is "b". This is the type of comedy that basically runs throughout the film, so if it's the kind that makes you laugh, perhaps you should give it a look. I saw this film many years ago on a small screen TV during a trip, so I had forgotten most of it. Recently I watch the DVD, and recommend it to Hong Kong movie fans looking for some comedy. There's a bit of everything, even some kung fu action.

4 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
The Fight Back to School Series: Part One., 27 August 2005

Author: Miyagis_Sweaty_wifebeater (sirjosephu@aol.com) from Sacramento, CA

Fight Back To School (1991) was a hilarious comedy that starred Stephen Chow as a cop who goes undercover at a local high school. His assignment? Find the Captain's (Barry Wong) favorite hand gun. He lost it and believes that someone in the high school might know the whereabouts of it. Being a man in his late twenties, he has to convince the head master (Dennis Chan) that he's a seventeen year old kid. Whilst at school, he develops a rush on a teach (the ever hot Cheung Man) an befriends a lovable nerd (Gabriel Wong) and his crew of misfits.

Will Star Chow fend of the strict Miss Leung (Yuen King-Tan)? Confront the shady Brother Teddy (Roy Cheung) about the missing gun? Does he discover something more than a simple robbery case? To find out you have to watch FIGHT BACK TO SCHOOL. A highly enjoyable comedy that'll tickle your funny bone!

Highly recommended.

3 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
Another good example of a good Stephen Chow comedy, 25 February 2008

Author: chrichtonsworld from Netherlands

Stephen Chow gives slapstick a whole other meaning. Like many of his movies he provides a humor that is very visual and easy to understand. So very accessible for a large (international) audience. In "Fighting back to school" there are some jokes that require knowledge of the Cantonese language. But because these jokes are accompanied by some visual sketch you do get what it all is about. While "Fighting Back to School" is a pure comedy there is just enough action to keep those fans happy. It is well know fact that Stephen Chow is a huge fan of Bruce Lee. He also tries to show it in many of his movies. In "Fighting back..." there are some scenes which are a obvious tribute to the Master. I couldn't discover any direct parodies on certain movies. But it is my guess that "Fightin back..." is some sort of take on teen high school movies produced in Hollywood. But who cares ,it doesn't matter because Stephen Chow movies are fun. Just watch it!

3 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
One of Stephen Chow's best films, 7 January 2007

Author: kwongers from USA

One of the best Stephen Chow movies. Although it lacks the polish and CGI of his latest efforts, "Shaolin Soccer" and "Kung Fu Hustle," this movie is still hugely entertaining and essential viewing, especially if you like Chow's special brand of "moleitau" (nonsense humor).

Chow plays Star Chow, a cop who goes undercover as a student in order to find a missing gun. He is understandably annoyed, shouting at his senior, "I wanted to be a cop so I didn't have to go to school anymore!" He gets to display a huge range of hilarious, ticked-off expressions. Plot is thin, but who cares: after all, this movie is just a stage for Chow to show off his impeccable comic timing, slapstick, and nonsense humor. The familiar supporting cast is also strong.

Chow has to deal with a myriad of things as an undercover at school: professors that throw chalkboard erasers at him, student gangs and cliques, homework, tests, girls, etc. This is great comic material and Chow rises to the occasion admirably. There's a hilarious scene where he cheats on his Chinese history test by calling up the police station and asking the chief to give him the answers. Other hilarious scenes include him failing to turn in his homework and being subject to public humiliation, fitting in with his classmates, dealing with an absent-minded science professor, and developing a crush on one of his teachers.

Compared the "Kung Fu Hustle" and "Shaolin Soccer," this movie is less accessible to Western audiences because of the abundance of verbal comedy. It is still a very funny movie with tons of slapstick, but it's even funnier if you understand Cantonese because a lot of the comedy comes from Cantonese slang and Chow's intonation. However, I've shown this movie to friends who don't understand Cantonese at all and they have all loved it.

Bottom line: One of Chow's best. This movie is a good example of why audiences love Chow and why he was one of the biggest HK box-office draws in the 90s (he still is a big box office draw). He oozes winning charisma and charm. Laugh-out-loud funny. Highly recommended.

2 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
Early Stephen Chow, 3 July 2006

Author: kyrat from CA, USA

The usual amusing Hong Kong martial arts/comedy from Stephen Chow. As with many of his other films (All for the Winner, God of Gamblers 2)- his "uncle tat" is also present. I don't find him that amusing, but I guess Stephen needs a straight man.

The usual amusing antics, fight scenes and physical comedy ensue.

One of the funniest moments I've seen in a film (and I don't usually like crass humor) was when Stephen is forced to chew the "gum" (actually a condom) and manages to blow a bubble! Don't miss the outtakes from this scene in the closing credits.

P.S. This seems to have been filmed during the Gulf War and I found it interesting that Stephen Chow would be wearing a Saddam Hussein tshirt in the film. Was this to express solidarity with Iraq against the (first) US invasion? Was this supposed to be an ironic comment the way some kids think it's funny to wear a Charles Manson shirt?

Entertaining but not visually stimulating, 12 February 2009

Author: funkyfry from Oakland CA

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

I liked this film, but I have to say that something about it is lost in the translation. Or so I have to assume because it's a very popular movie in China, with several sequels I believe, while watching it with subtitles it was only occasionally amusing. But there were some laugh out loud moments, and I assume that it has a lot more humor that I just can't access because of the language barrier.

Chow plays Star Chow, a rookie cop who's sent to a school undercover to find a cop's missing handgun -- sort of like "Stray Dog" meets "21 Jump Street." He's an excellent fighter, but not a natural leader, so his school experiences basically serve to make him understand the value of working together with others to accomplish a common goal. He also falls in love with a pretty schoolteacher who takes an interest in him (Sharla Cheung), and befriends an eccentric janitor/spy (Man Tat Ng -- Chow's coach in his more famous later film "Shaolin Soccer").

The chemistry between all the leads is excellent. The school fight scenes have some of the same flavour as Chow's later film "CJ7." Chow himself is very funny with his deadpan expressions and so forth. But this film lacks some of the visual nuance of his own directorial efforts, or of some of his later films with Vincent Kok. It lacks resonance and becomes just a diversion. But not a bad one at that.

Fun Comedy From Stephen Chow, 30 June 2008

Author: crossbow0106 from United States

A successful comedy which spawned two sequels, essentially this story is about a Hong Kong policeman who poses as a student at Edinburgh College to find out who from that school stole the favorite gun of his boss. Star Chow (thats his name in the film) always hated school and he is taunted by other students and teachers, save for the pretty Miss Ho. It seems he spends a lot less time trying to find the gun and more time trying to save himself from getting in trouble at school. This film is a pretty good slapstick comedy with some action. Its not surprising that it was popular, it flows well, and Stephen Chow is good in the role. I don't know about the sequels (yet), but I think you'll enjoy this.

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