Many comedies made in Hong Kong at the time were like this, slapstick laden, running in double time, full of wackiness. This film is about a father with three children, two boys and a girl, and how the kids help him find love. The girl is played by Loletta Lee in an early role and you can already see her blossoming into a beauty. Karl Maka plays the father and he is just all over the place. The older son tries to help his dad by giving him advice, but sometimes the star of the show is the two year old Junior. His expressions, his little mannerisms are all funny. He gets some of the best laughs. There is, thankfully, Paula Tsui, who plays, literally, the lady next door Paula, whom the father's kids are trying to fix him up with. I don't know why he didn't try before, she's cute and sweet, but this is a comedy so these things have to play by their own rules. This comedy works because it doesn't lose focus. There are funny pranks, lots of running around, lots of shouting and, when you need it, a little warmth. If you like these kind of slapstick comedies, its definitely worth watching. Again, they made many slapstick comedies in Hong Kong at the time just like this. This is definitely a watchable one.
2 Reviews
Merry Christmas is not a stocking filler (contains spoilers...)
zoe_smith18 October 2003
Warning: Spoilers
This is a very similar film to 'A Wonderful Life' also featuring Leslie Cheung, but in Merry Christmas, Cheung's appearance is quite minimal, and the main credits go to Karl Maka as 'Baldy Mak'.
It's a very light-hearted, typically Cantonese romp about a dysfunctional family headed by Baldy Mak. Many things are greatly exaggerated in his 'ordinary' life, but it comes down to how can he get his new love to stay with him after she announces she wants to emigrate to the USA. Cheung's role is a small side part; he's a jack-the-lad figure who tries to seduce Baldy's daughter within the film. Meanwhile Baldy's elder son also has a love problem being mapped out. Just like in 'A Wonderful Life', everything materialises as a happy ending on the eve of New Year's Day (this time the Western New Year).
It's not really anything special; it won't move you at all - just a flashback to an average piece of Cantonese cinema.
It's a very light-hearted, typically Cantonese romp about a dysfunctional family headed by Baldy Mak. Many things are greatly exaggerated in his 'ordinary' life, but it comes down to how can he get his new love to stay with him after she announces she wants to emigrate to the USA. Cheung's role is a small side part; he's a jack-the-lad figure who tries to seduce Baldy's daughter within the film. Meanwhile Baldy's elder son also has a love problem being mapped out. Just like in 'A Wonderful Life', everything materialises as a happy ending on the eve of New Year's Day (this time the Western New Year).
It's not really anything special; it won't move you at all - just a flashback to an average piece of Cantonese cinema.
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