72 Tenants Of Prosperity (DVD) (Malaysia Version) DVD Region 3

The plot basically revolves around two families in Mongkok, headed by Kung (Eric Tsang) and Kin's (Jacky Cheung), whose rivalry stretches back through the decades since Hong (Anita Yuen), the neighbourhood beauty they were both in love with, married Kung. Now the two run competing mobile phone shops, plotting to outdo each other while trying to keep their heads above water in the face of threatened closure by a mainland businessman (Leung Tin) who plans to redevelop the area. At the same time, romantic complications ensue when their various children start to fall for each other, with Kung's son (Bosco Wong) pursuing Kin's daughter (Stephy Tang) despite their fathers' objections.

There actually is quite a lot more to the plot of 72 Tenants of Prosperity though to list all of its shenanigans would require a long and convoluted list of misunderstandings and sub Romeo and Juliet style romances that wouldn't really do justice to the fact that the film works surprisingly well despite its narrative clumsiness and excess. The film is very much in the Lunar New Year manner, meaning a fair amount of nonsense, though Eric Tsang and Patrick Kong's direction is energetic and breezy rather than chaotic, making for engaging viewing that though unfocused is at least never overly random or undeservedly melodramatic. The film has the feel of an old school Hong Kong farce, and the whole childhood friends turned warring shopkeepers theme is pleasantly familiar, making for plenty of wacky schemes as the two try to usurp each other. The film benefits greatly from having a genuinely local feel, and does have an authentically Hong Kong atmosphere and style, dealing with issues such as rent rises, mainland Chinese business redevelopment and even rooftop acid attacks.

Obviously, the film's main selling point is its amazing ensemble cast, and it really does manage to pull together a mind boggling collection of stars from TVB, the big screen, the music industry, and other famous faces. Although it would be impossible to list all of the cameos here, this does include the likes of Lam Suet, Kelly Chen, Myolie Wu, Gordon Lam, Andy Hui, and many, many others. It would likely take a real Hong Kong expert to recognise them all, though thankfully the film uses most of them for throwaway cameos or gags, and even viewers with only a passing knowledge of Hong Kong pop culture aren't left out of the fun too much. The cast all seem to be having a fine old time, and whilst the film does at times feel a little like playing spot the star, this does help to keep things interesting, with a few amusing surprise appearances along the way.

Inevitably, this does result in quite a few groan worthy self referential gags, for example about Kin resembling and sounding like Jacky Cheung, though Tsang and Kong wisely don't push this too far. Whilst a lot of the humour is fairly broad slapstick, the film is generally very funny, with some fairly creative gags revolving around Kung and Kin's odd attempts to push their phones, which somehow seems to result in several random musical numbers. At the same time, the film includes some spot on film references, predictably to Ip Man and Donnie Yen, as well as the other recent Shaw TVB collaboration, Turning Point Oddly, the film's funniest moments come through a strange line in Japan AV related jokes, with Stephy Tang's character having worked in the industry and being inexplicably obsessed with its admirable work ethic.

Offbeat touches like this give 72 Tenants of Prosperity a real lift, and it works well both as an opportunity to see an incredible amount of Hong Kong luminaries all together in one film, and as an above average Lunar New Year comedy. Cheerful and fun throughout, though nothing particularly new or clever, it entertains in familiar and inoffensive fashion, and marks another successful outing for Shaw Brothers and TVB.

by James Mudge - BeyondHollywood.com

Like most Lunar New Year comedies, 72 Tenants of Prosperity concerns family dynamics and over-extended romantic situations. Kung (Eric Tsang) and Kin (Jacky Cheung) are former best buddies who let their friendship go to rot over Hong (Anita Yuen), who married Kung and bore him two children played by TVB regulars Bosco Wong and Linda Chung. Kin is currently their neighbor and has two children of his own, one played by TVB regular (See a pattern here?) Wong Cho-Lam. Not-a-TVB-regular Stephy Tang plays Kin's daughter, who's enamored with Japanese AV culture and just returned from Japan where she worked as an assistant director on AV films. What follows are some surprising gags acknowledging Tang's minor resemblance to pornstar Akiho Yoshizawa (who's sometimes referred to as "AV Stephy"), and a set-up for a possible romance between Stephy Tang and Bosco Wong's characters. Since their families are estranged, that's your standard Romeo and Juliet storyline right there.

Kung and Kin also get pissed at each other over work. The two run competing mobile phone businesses and occasionally spar at their local merchant meetings, where everyone grouses over a dastardly criminal who's throwing bottles of acid from the rooftops - a reference to a serial crime in Hong Kong that's received plenty of local media attention, not to mention parodies in Split Second Murders and Trick or Cheat. 72 Tenants of Prosperity trumps both those films by working that real-life detail directly into the plot, with the acid bomber essentially becoming the film's "big bad". Another potential bad guy is a Mainland property developer (Leung Tin) who may be looking to buy up Mongkok and evict the Sai Yeung Choi locals. The biggest bads, however, are Kung and Kin, whose feud is getting in the way of the mega-mega happy ending. The X-factor is Hong, who may have lingering feelings for Kin despite being married to Kung. Who will she choose? Her heartbroken former flame or the barrel-shaped man who fathered her children?

If you answered "both", then congratulations - you guessed right. No, Kung and Kin don't engage in wife-swapping, but the film pretty much does what you'd expect, using every possible means to please the largest audience it can. By the end, love finds a way, the bad guys pay, and the big boys up north are portrayed as so nice that they'll help Hong Kong locals in need. The Mongkok locals eventually get Mainland funding for the "Paradise Project", a redeveloped version of Mongkok that'll give everyone the happy and prosperous ending they're looking for. Also, Kung and Kin's children get together romantically, meaning not only a Bosco Wong-Stephy Tang pairing but also a Wong Cho-Lam-Linda Chung pairing. All these stories are hackneyed and the emotions predictably syrupy, but to the film's credit it sometimes manages to affect. A lot is due to the actors in question, e.g. Jacky Cheung and Anita Yuen sell it beautifully, while Bosco Wong and Stephy Tang aren't quite as successful. Eric Tsang is Eric Tsang, in that he overacts effectively. You can easily evaluate the rest of the cast yourself.

Shoring things up are often surprising gags. 72 Tenants of Prosperity gleefully parodies local issues and culture, taking shots at everything from shopping and eating to triads and recycling. Local celebrities get roasted; besides Stephy Tang being likened to Akiho Yoshizawa, the film notes Linda Chung's self-described resemblance to Wu Chun of boy band Fahrenheit, and makes multiple references to Jacky Cheung looking and acting like, well, Jacky Cheung. Wong Cho-Lam gets to show off his own surprising Jacky Cheung impression, and local films and television also get nods. The casting is also fun; Joyce Cheng Yan-Yee cameos in a flashback as the same character played by her late mother Lydia Shum, Prudence Lau reprises her Golden Horse award-winning role from True Women For Sale, and Justin Lo and Raymond Lam play - get this - younger versions of Eric Tsang and Jacky Cheung. Also, seeing Jacky Cheung and Anita Yuen back onscreen in a silly comedy is a joy on its own, and the massive parade of stars (well, television stars) has its attraction.

72 Tenants of Prosperity occasionally stalls. A parody of Ip Man is performed too reverently to be very funny, though seeing Linda Chung as the Donnie Yen stand-in is amusing. Also, Michael Tse reprises the role of Laughing Gor again, making this the third time in less than a year that the audience-favorite character is being pushed by TVB. Then again, TVB has always been all about TVB, and that shows here, with the station's general manager Stephen Chan (who only provides a voiceover) getting top billing during the end credits. The rampant product placement can also be distracting, though the film even pokes fun at the in-movie ads, having Bosco Wong and Wong Cho-Lam show up at the end credits to literally thank each and every sponsor. 72 Tenants of Prosperity is thin commercial cinema but its knowing details, agreeable sentiments, and local humor make it a winning diversion for Hong Kong audiences. International audiences unfamiliar with Hong Kong issues may not be quite as entertained, but that's hardly the movie's fault. Given its genre's inherent limitations, 72 Tenants of Prosperity is a surprising success.

by Kozo - LoveHKFilm.com