Lost in Hong Kong (2015) (DVD) (English Subtitled) (Hong Kong Version) DVD Region 3

Xu Zheng plays Xu Lai, a businessman who back in the 1990s at college harboured dreams of becoming an artist like his sweetheart Yang Yi (Du Juan). After Yang Yi won an art scholarship to study in Hong Kong, Xu Lai married marketing major Cai Bo (Vicki Zhao) instead, ending up as a bra-design expert. Despite his success, he finds himself unable to let go of the memories of his time with Yang Yi, and when she gets in touch inviting him to her latest exhibition while on holiday in Hong Kong, he resolves to try and meet her and to make good on their long-delayed courtship. Unfortunately for him, as well as having to give Cai Bo and his unpleasant in-laws the slip, Xu Lai is stuck with her overbearing brother Cai Lala (Bao Bei'er), who fancies himself a documentary filmmaker and follows him around everywhere with a camera. One mishap leads to another, and with a pair of detectives on his trail (Sam Lee, Wild City, and Eric Kot, Temporary Family), the chances of Xu Lai fulfilling his dreams start to look pretty slim.

As might be expected, Lost in Hong Kong doesn't stray too far from the established formula which has made the series so popular in China, with a very similar setup, characters, and broad sense of humour. Although essentially a madcap comedy, the film shows a similar approach to genre-blending, starting off very much in the style of So Young and other recent nostalgia-themed outings, and working in lots of family drama, romance and even action along with the fun. Narratively the film is certainly more focused and conventional than Lost in Thailand, and though chaotic is clearly leading towards a series of life lessons for Xu Lai. This combination of different elements, cheerfully bundled together, works well enough, and the film does offer an interesting perspective on male morals in modern Chinese society, more so than its predecessor – even though the story is basically following Xu Lai on a quest to cheat on his caring wife, emotionally and physically, it's surprisingly free of crassness or cheap shots, and does so in a way which may ring painfully true in terms of its observations on the male ego.

Thankfully, all this aside, the film is funny, and while featuring fewer wild set pieces and lowbrow situations than Thailand, has a solid gag hit ratio. Culture clash and fish out of water comedy are naturally the order of the day, and there's some amusingly creative slapstick thrown in as things get increasingly out of hand. Unlike some other Mainland productions, there's no obvious distaste for Hong Kong and its citizens, with the proceedings having a vaguely touristic feel and look, something which helps boost the film's overall amiability. Also enjoyable is the affection for Hong Kong cinema showcased throughout, with references and nods to the likes of Police Story, A Moment of Romance, the films of Wong Kar Wai and others, along with well-known musical cues and appearances from familiar faces such as Wong Jing and Lam Suet – fans will certainly have fun keeping track.

Sadly, the film doesn’t quite do so well when it comes to its characters and the chemistry between them. Whereas in Thailand had a real spark between leads Xu Zheng, Wang Baoqiang and Huang Bo, the same can't be said here for Xu and Bao Bei'er, mainly due to the latter being landed with a part that crosses the line far too often between likeable dimwit and aggravating dolt. The lack of odd couple fireworks both undermines at least some of the comedy and leaves the film without the usual third act satisfaction of bromance bonding. Du Juan and, more unforgivably, Vicky Zhao are given very little to do aside from filling in undemanding and thinly written female roles that serve no real purpose other than pushing Xu Lai to make choices. There’s certainly a lot more that the script could have done with its cast, and the final twenty minutes come across as rather contrived as a result.

Still, for a big budget Chinese studio comedy, Lost in Hong Kong has enough fun and star power to make it an entertaining watch, and it's a perfectly acceptable as a popcorn offering from Xu Zheng. With the formula wearing a bit thin by now, there's likely not much mileage left in the Lost series, though it's served its purpose well, and its three entries are among the funnier Chinese genre films of the last few years.

by James Mudge - EasternKicks.com