Enter the Phoenix

Year:2004
Director:Stephen Fung Tak-Lun
Cast:Daniel Wu, Eason Chan Yik-Shun, Karen Mok Man-Wai, Chapman To Man-Chat, Law Kar-Ying, Stephen Fung Tak-Lun, Yuen Biao, Chan Wai-Man, Hayama Hiro, Lee Kin-Yan, Glen Chin, Lee Lik-Chee, Nicholas Tse Ting-Fung, Sammi Cheng Sau-Man, Sam Lee Chan-Sam, Tin Kai-Man, Maggie Lau Si-Wai, Koey Wong Ka-Man, Hayama Hiro
Description:
The
ballyhooed feature directorial debut of actor Stephen
Fung, Enter the Phoenix is possessing of all
the hallmarks of easy-to-please commercial cinema. It's
got a multitude of popular current stars, piles of nifty
name cameos, bursts of HK-style action, jokes up the
wazoo, and not an ounce of pretension. It also has a
title which has NOTHING to do with the film itself,
and instead seems to be a cloying reference to the arrival
of some awesome action filmmaking force . However, what Enter the Phoenix
does have is a remarkably sound comedy script梬hich
recalls Korea's popular gangster comedy genre梐nd
a sense of humor which works more often than it doesn't.
Add all that together and you have a marketing package
dream that梘asp梥ucceeds more often than it
fails. Enter the Phoenix isn't outstanding cinema,
but it gets the job done in a surprisingly entertaining
fashion.
Top Hong Kong triad leader
Hung is deathly ill, so he sends trusted
lieutenant 8th Master to go find his
son Georgie , who's living in Thailand. Hung
intends for Georgie to serve as Big Brother to the Triad,
but there's just one wrinkle: Georgie is gay. Luckily
8th Master and son Kin are well aware of
this unpopular factoid梩hey offer to keep Georgie's
secret safe in exchange for his travel to Hong Kong.
Unfortunately, they get the wrong guy: they mistake
Georgie's roommate Sam for Georgie, and
offer him Big Brother status, which happens to be Sam's
biggest dream EVER. To fulfill his adolescent desire
to lord over triad types, Sam begs Georgie to pull an
identity switch, which Georgie first objects to. However,
when Hung kicks the bucket, Georgie pretends to be Sam
and heads to Hong Kong to attend his father's funeral.
In Hong Kong, things get
dicier. Apparently, there was some bad history between
Hung and triad rival/brother Fai . A long time
ago, the two were at odds over the death of one of their
comrades. The conflict was resolved, but not without
a price: the dead man left a bitter young son, who's
grown into the intense Chow , who's now
Fai's right-hand enforcer. Chow apparently hasn't forgiven
Hung for his father's demise, and is all-too-ready to
transfer the blame onto Georgie梠r Sam, who he
thinks is Georgie. Meanwhile, everyone thinks Georgie
is straight, a ruse which isn't that hard to keep up
since Sam is straight. The sexual
identity shenanigans get even weirder when Fai's daughter
Julie enters the picture. Fai looks upon
Julie as a potential marital offering to Georgie, who
everyone believes to be straight, which he is, but 8th
Master and Kin believe otherwise. Julie, however, has
her eye on Sam, who openly says he's gay, except he's
really Georgie. Got it?
Probably not. The wacky
sitcom setup of Enter the Phoenix is difficult
to put into words because it involves so much mistaken
identity and double deceptions, but onscreen it's easy
and even enjoyable to follow. This is largely due to
the actors, who梐side from all being pals of director
Stephen Fung梑ring self-deprecating charm and good
comic timing to the table. Daniel Wu, in particular,
is likable and charming as the gay kung-fu artist who
doesn't really want to be a triad leader. Eason Chan
chimes in with his usual bouts of overacting, but his
antics are largely consistent with the character. Chan
thankfully varies his performance such that he's a likable,
dopey comic lead. Karen Mok oozes sexy-cute comic charm
as the nominal female, and Chapman To and Law Kar-Ying
provide terrific support. Those looking for a film starring
popular current idols/popstars will be happy with Enter
the Phoenix. And for those who like old-time actors,
there's the presence of Yuen Biao, which is a big deal
because Yuen Biao rarely appears in anything released
theatrically anymore.
Further helping things
is the script by Stephen Fung and Lo Yiu-Fai, which
is loaded with screenwriting shortcuts, but manages
to entertain nonetheless. The film mines typical triad
themes of righteousness and honor, and throws in stuff
about friendship , parental duty , and tolerance of those who are
different .
Thankfully, most of the above syrupy subplots are handled
with minimum sappiness and maximum charm by the performers.
Fung was wise to put so much on his cast of pals, because
they bring a fun chemistry and wit to the proceedings
that the usual Wong Jing band of misfits usually doesn't.
Not that the actors can always cover for Fung's manufactured
piecemeal storyline. The abundance of subplots and character
relationships sometimes slows the film to a crawl, and
indeed the film seems to limp towards its final action
finale. However, this is largely fun stuff.
If there are any real
debits to Enter the Phoenix, they would be the
sometimes muddled action , and the performance of Stephen
Fung, who oozes schoolboy menace as bad guy Chow. Fung
has usually been better in roles which emphasize his
shallowness , or play up his
cartoony machismo .
Enter the Phoenix is largely a cartoony film,
so his glowering bad guy routine suffices, but he's
as convincingly intense as a ninth grader in detention.
Still, as a director, he comes through nicely, and displays
a handle on pacing and storytelling that shows definite
promise. As a calling card for future commercial cinema
director Stephen Fung, Enter the Phoenix is good
stuff, especially if he can continue to coerce his pals
into appearing. Aside from the main cast, Fung gets
fun cameos out of Sam Lee, Sammi Cheng, and most especially
Nicholas Tse, in a hilarious turn as a too-tough triad
dude who gets his comeuppance. All told, this is fun,
likable, throwaway stuff that won't win awards, but
should charm the popstar chasers who constitute the
majority of HK Cinema's current fanbase. You know who
you are.