Ticket (DVD) (Hong Kong Version) DVD Region 3

Showing obvious resentment lingering from her abandonment, Yu-Tong claims that she doesn't need to find her real mother. However, after some gentle prodding from Tsang, she changes her mind and soon embarks on a road trip with handsome childhood friend Zhi-Xuan (Nicky Wu) in tow. The journey takes them from Yunnan to Tibet to other picturesque areas, as they make a few wrong turns while also stopping to argue or admire the gorgeous scenery. Along the way, Yu-Tong continues to question her journey, flipping back and forth between a need to find her parents and fear at the possible truth behind her abandonment. What if she wasn't abandoned due to China's one-child policy? What if the truth is that her mother simply didn't want her?

As Yu-Tong, Zuo Xiao-Qing possesses clean, pretty looks, but the actress doesn't quite summon the emotion or personality needed to make the character truly compelling. Her issues are handed out mostly in dialogue, but there are related characters and events that support the film's themes. Ticket opens with Yu-Tong reporting the birth of a child with a heart disease, and how the parents (Liu Si-Tong and Chin Siu-Ho) are willing to carry the child to term even though the actual chance of survival is slim. Yu-Tong openly questions why the parents don't just opt for the abortion, obviously injecting some of her rueful personal feelings into the conflict. However, her feelings never register that strongly with the audience, making Yu-Tong rather unidentifiable, especially in the film's early going.

Thankfully, director Jacob Cheung manages to close the gap caused by his somewhat distant leading lady. Cheung makes some good decisions with Ticket, and chooses a lighter approach to his sentimental subject matter than some directors might have opted for. Some of his decisions are superficial, but smart; the film is carried in many places by its fine cinematography, wonderful scenery and very enjoyable music. At the same time, the themes and emotions presented are quite pleasant, and should strike a chord with the intended audience. The film's opening is a little flat-footed, but once Yu-Tong and Zhi-Xuan embark on their journey, their search proves more interesting. The journey is remarkably low tension and the minor conflicts that erupt are not really felt, but when Yu-Tong finally finds the truth about her mother, everything seems to fall into place. The filmmakers elicit the intended emotions and manage to earn the expected sentimentality.

There's also a third plotline in the film, involving a Mainland taxi driver (Fan Wei) who's always in the company of his autistic young son. The driver crosses paths with Yu-Tong twice, once in the hospital at the film's opening, and again when he ferries her in his taxi. He shows up again in the film's final reel, when he loses his son on the train and must race to the next stop to get him. That event is rendered in the same low-tension manner as the rest of the film's conflicts, as there's never any sense that anything bad can really happen, and yet the event once again provides reinforcement for the film's positive depiction of parenthood. Ticket is a feel-good movie about the choices faced by parents, and its viewpoint is warm and affectionate. Cheung pushes upbeat, positive emotions, and never really slams us over the head with any lessons or messages. Being a parent is hard, but nobody in Ticket seems to mind at all. Those themes are not challenging or truly dramatic, but the emotions conjured are relaxing, pleasant, and ultimately quite agreeable.

by Kozo - LoveHKFilm.com