Ngo lou poh ng gau ching

While "My Wife is 18" (aka "Ngo liu poh lut gau ching") is a very generic movie in the romantic comedy genre, then it still turned out to be entertaining and watchable.

The story is about 30 year old Sip-Sam Cheung (played by Ekin Cheng) who is a long time student trying to get his degree. Upon the wish of his aging grand mother he marries Yoyo Ma (played by Charlene Choi), an 18 year old college girl. And when Cheung starts to work as a psychology teacher at Yoyo's school, things really take a turn for the hilarious.

Right, well all the core essentials were used for this particular Hong Kong romantic comedy at the hands of director James Yuen, so you know exactly what kind of movie you are in for here. As such, then "My Wife is 18" offers nothing new or innovative to the romantic comedy genre.

They had managed to put together a good cast ensemble though, with seasoned actor Ekin Cheng opposite the Young singer/actress Charlene Choi. They do have good on-screen chemistry. It was also really nice to see Richard Ng (playing the professor) in the movie, just a shame that he only had such a small role. Bernice Liu (playing Miss Lee) was also doing a good job, and I wished that they had given her a bigger role and more screen time because she really was well-cast for her role.

"My Wife is 18" is a charming movie because of its storyline, but with that in mind, then it is also a very generic movie for its genre. If you enjoy romantic comedies, then "My Wife is 18" is a good choice for a movie to watch. But if you are getting an introduction to the Hong Kong cinema, then it is hardly the best of choices.

I wasn't familiar with the fact that this 2002 movie was followed up by a sequel in 2012, until I happened to come across that by sheer random luck here on IMDb.

I am rating "My Wife is 18" six out of ten stars given the storyline and the acting performances. And also because there are some fairly good laughs here and there throughout the movie.

Although this film wouldn't necessarily be the one I'd name on the Top of 2002 list, I have to say that it is quite humorous as it explores the quirkiness of a mismatched marriage.

Ekin Cheng plays a thirty-something graduate student in London who is struggling to get his M.Phil. Charlene Choi, meanwhile, plays an 18 year old schoolkid from Hong Kong. Both have parents and grandparents who want to matchmake the two and arrange for them to be married. Naturally, they're not keen at first, but after meeting each other independently, they decide to 'marry', if only to please their grandparents and as long as they divorce a year later. They both return to Hong Kong, and start living together, but not everything runs as smoothly wasn't expected.

Casting this film couldn't have been easy, and the selection of an experienced actor as Cheng and an almost rookie in the form of Choi seems to have been considered very carefully. The onscreen chemistry isn't as great as I'd hope, but at least we did see glimmers of it there. Charlene Choi, 19 and whose main means of living is one half of Cantopop duo, Twins, still lacks that onscreen presence, but of the two movies I have now seen her in (the other being Funeral March with Eason Chan), there is talent and I expect her to continue a long way, even if it has to be helped by her singing career. Cheng, however masterful he is, doesn't seem to have been given enough to do in this movie, and his character seems too plain to create interest in.

A good one to watch for a laugh on a quiet night in.