Hong Kong martial arts flicks come in a few different flavors. Most fall into one of three categories, either being fairly straightforward action, a blend of action and comedy - or in some instances, so abjectly playful as to be more than a little cartoonish. 'Millionaires' Express,' also known as 'Shanghai Express,' generally counts among the latter. Inherent in the scene writing, this tone is amplified by flourishes including basic special effects and sped up footage. This is no especial mark against the feature - and I should say, it is a good bit of fun - but viewers should be aware of what they're getting into. More substantially trying on one's patience is storytelling and sequencing that feels notably scattered. There are multiple narrative threads that slowly converge leading into the third act, but they are presented in a manner that makes it feel far too much for the first two-thirds of the length as though they're totally disconnected, even as we know they're not. It's a credit to filmmaker Sammo Hung - writer, director, and star - that all the ideas do mesh together, but it's a fit that's a little uneven and marginally unconvincing, and it's not until the very climax that the whole meaningfully crystallizes.
It's a long walk to get to the utmost value of 'Millionaires' Express,' and sometimes it's fair to ponder what one has committed to watching. Still, for all the silliness, disparate story beats, and a large cast of characters, there's a great deal to enjoy here. Most immediately, a cavalcade of roles means lots of faces to fill them, and there are a lot of very recognizable names in the ensemble. Everyone joyfully leans into the varied personalities of their parts and does well to help bring the wild tale to life. Very importantly, that means a gleeful abundance of stunts as martial arts and otherwise action accompany much of the narrative. It's not until the climax that we're treated to absolute bombast in which fight sequences dominate, but it's utterly fantastic and does much to make up for any subjective prior shortcomings. And every little instance that we get along the way, if smaller in scope, is just as swell.
Meanwhile, from a technical standpoint - and where production design and art direction are concerned - 'Millionaires' Express' is outstanding. Arthur Wong's cinematography is sharp and crisp, and aside from post-production visuals, the practical effects are terrific. Fabulous set design and decoration, costume design, and hair and makeup work all contribute to a wonderful presentation that helps to truly transport the viewer to another time and place. Hung illustrates a keen eye for shot composition, and the orchestration of every scene as we see it is superb. Everything about the movie looks and sounds excellent. It's a tad regrettable that the writing doesn't quite keep up. It's not that Hung's screenplay is bad - far from it! Assessed piece by piece, the characters are incredibly varied, dialogue is clever, scene writing is robust, and the overall narrative is engaging and amusingly compelling. The chief fault here is just that the connective tissue between all the ideas herein isn't entirely as strong as it could or should be.
I think my words have been fairly critical here, so I need to repeat - I very much like this film. I have no regrets about watching it, and perhaps more to the point, no regrets about buying it, sights unseen, so I could watch it. I have a sense that viewers who are still more accustomed to the styles of Hong Kong cinema may see what I've opined and think I'm off my rocker; that may well be. All the same, I maintain that a bit more carefulness in the writing and sequencing would have strengthened the picture even more. But after all, maybe I'm nitpicking: it's fun, it's funny, it has action, it has comedy, and if imperfectly, it blends genres and ideas together into a single feature that's satisfying and entertaining when all is said and done. Save for diehard fans of Hong Kong films, or someone in the cast or crew, this isn't necessarily a movie one needs to go out of their way to see - but if you have the chance, 'Millionaires' Express' is definitely rather worthwhile, and a solid way to spend 100 minutes.
It's a long walk to get to the utmost value of 'Millionaires' Express,' and sometimes it's fair to ponder what one has committed to watching. Still, for all the silliness, disparate story beats, and a large cast of characters, there's a great deal to enjoy here. Most immediately, a cavalcade of roles means lots of faces to fill them, and there are a lot of very recognizable names in the ensemble. Everyone joyfully leans into the varied personalities of their parts and does well to help bring the wild tale to life. Very importantly, that means a gleeful abundance of stunts as martial arts and otherwise action accompany much of the narrative. It's not until the climax that we're treated to absolute bombast in which fight sequences dominate, but it's utterly fantastic and does much to make up for any subjective prior shortcomings. And every little instance that we get along the way, if smaller in scope, is just as swell.
Meanwhile, from a technical standpoint - and where production design and art direction are concerned - 'Millionaires' Express' is outstanding. Arthur Wong's cinematography is sharp and crisp, and aside from post-production visuals, the practical effects are terrific. Fabulous set design and decoration, costume design, and hair and makeup work all contribute to a wonderful presentation that helps to truly transport the viewer to another time and place. Hung illustrates a keen eye for shot composition, and the orchestration of every scene as we see it is superb. Everything about the movie looks and sounds excellent. It's a tad regrettable that the writing doesn't quite keep up. It's not that Hung's screenplay is bad - far from it! Assessed piece by piece, the characters are incredibly varied, dialogue is clever, scene writing is robust, and the overall narrative is engaging and amusingly compelling. The chief fault here is just that the connective tissue between all the ideas herein isn't entirely as strong as it could or should be.
I think my words have been fairly critical here, so I need to repeat - I very much like this film. I have no regrets about watching it, and perhaps more to the point, no regrets about buying it, sights unseen, so I could watch it. I have a sense that viewers who are still more accustomed to the styles of Hong Kong cinema may see what I've opined and think I'm off my rocker; that may well be. All the same, I maintain that a bit more carefulness in the writing and sequencing would have strengthened the picture even more. But after all, maybe I'm nitpicking: it's fun, it's funny, it has action, it has comedy, and if imperfectly, it blends genres and ideas together into a single feature that's satisfying and entertaining when all is said and done. Save for diehard fans of Hong Kong films, or someone in the cast or crew, this isn't necessarily a movie one needs to go out of their way to see - but if you have the chance, 'Millionaires' Express' is definitely rather worthwhile, and a solid way to spend 100 minutes.