The Mermaid - 美人魚 - Mei Ren Yu

美人魚 (The Mermaid) is an 2016 film from director and producer Stephen Chow. The film was produced by both Hong Kong and Zhong Guo production companies. The film stars Deng Chao, Jelly Lin (Lin Yun), Show Luo, and Kitty Zhang (Zhang Yuqi). The supporting cast include a who's who of Chow's previous colaborators and cameos from Tsui Hark, Wen Zhang, and Kris Wu. The movie is currently the highest grossing film in Zhong Guo. Ever.

Deng Chao plays Liu Xuan, a rich business guy that buys an island. Because the island has dolphins inhabiting it, it is designated as a environmentally protected area where no development can take place. However, he uses technology to drive away the dolphins and gets a permit to develop. However, the mermaids live there and are now plotting to kill Liu. They want to kidnap him, figuring that his death will stop the development.

I'll only go so far with the plot. If I tell more, it'll ruin the surprise. I went into the movie having seen the terrible trailer that basically tells of a tail of a mermaid kidnapping Liu.

I loved this movie. I laughed out loud through out the movie. There was one scene that was so funny, that I was crying from laughing so hard. There were several scenes that are homages to classic TVB dramas of the 1980s and to the basic Kung Fu movies of the 1980s and 1990s. Similar homages are also paid in other Chow movies. This one is no different, just done differently. As a kid that grew up watching TVB and 1980s HK movies, came to age during the early 1990s HK kung fu films, I felt nostalgia to the nth degree watching this.

I watched the movie at an local AMC with a friend who isn't familiar with Chow and he thought it was one of the better films out of Zhong Guo he's seen. He laughed through out the movie too.

I am rambling here, but this movie isn't going to win any artsy fartsy awards. But it has won my laugher and will be on repeat viewings for years to come.

Journey To The West: Conquering The Demons - 西遊:降魔篇

Journey To The West: Conquering The Demons (西遊:降魔篇) is an 2013 film out of Zhong Guo. The film stars Wen Zhang and Shu Qi. The supporting cast include Huang Bo, Show Lo, and Chrissie Chau. The movie is the highest grossing film out of Zhong Guo. It also was the highest grossing film for several months in early 2013.



Chen is a demon hunter that travels where evil energy is strong. Chen lands in a fishing village and takes on a fish demon. When he tries to turn the demon via love, another demon hunter comes and captures the demon through brute force. Chen goes back to his master for advice. The master tells him that his path is right and not to waver. Chen than finds the den of a pig demon. When the brute force demon hunter that captured the fish comes to his rescue, they are both defeated. When Chen ask his master for advice, the master points him to the Monkey King Demon. On the way there, Chen is faces with some obstacles. The other demon hunter is Duan and falls in love with Chen. Duan risk her life to save Chen over and over.



This movie was very well made. If you watched enough cartoons, movies, and dramas from Zhong Guo, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, the story of the Journey To The West and the Monkey King will show itself. It is like the Brothers Grimm tales of the "western" countries, but the Asian countries have Journey To The West among other stories.



This movie was Wu Li Tou to the max. You would expect that from the forefathers in Stephen Chow. From nose bleeds, to getting K'd, it was a flashback to the HK movies hi jinx of the 1980s and 1990s that made me love HK cinema so much.

Shu Qi is showing her age whilst trying to play a youngster, but she did pull it off. This is Shu Qi that got all of Asia forgetting her teen coming out party. Shu Qi keeps on keeping on and we all love her for that.