Luen oi hang sing

This film I felt was simply outstanding and emotional. Tiramisu tells of the fleeting love story between Fung (Nicholas Tse) and Jane (Karena Lam). Fung is a young postman by day and janitor by night, who also happened to be deaf since the death of his father years before. Jane is a dancer and part of a promising contemporary dance group who have reached the final of a major dance competition. Both happen to meet coincidentally in various places within a day in Hong Kong, but don't exchange a word. However, a tragic road accident takes away Jane's life and she seeks Fung to fulfill a few final requests on her behalf before she enters the underworld.

One can't help but make the comparison that Tiramisu is a cross between Ghost and Save The Last Dance, although in truth it does stand out as being very different between the two. The film starts off quite neatly, with as little dialogue as possible, but every fine detail carefully placed into the viewer's mind. As the film progresses, it gets very emotional and is clearly just beautifully and intelligently crafted, with different settings that engage the thoughts of the viewer. The dialogue is sweet and there are good moments of drama, and coupled with a wonderful score and choreography for a few of the dance scenes, I was very impressed by how well the film was put together.

Just watching this film, it is easy to see how difficult the roles are to act, as it requires a lot of purposeful training. And I feel the decision to cast two young actors in the lead role was an excellent choice as Nicholas and Karena play the leads excellently and the spontaneity. Given Nicholas' recent problems and bad press, let's hope he can bounce back with a few more films like this

One to watch

Karena Lam is a dancer, Nic Tse a mailman. They have a chance encounter, and she is thinking of him when she suddenly gets flattened by a passing bus. Now her ghost is back, inhabiting his body so she can finish the dance recital she was going to give. Only trouble is, if she stays in him for too long he may die too. Only other trouble is, he's falling in love and doesn't mind dying if it means being with her. Those looking to see a lot of dancing are in for a disappointment, this is no PARA PARA SAKURA (2001). But director Dante Lam does create a very interesting representation of the underworld -- it looks a lot like the Loire valley, France, except with some black riders right out of LORD OF THE RINGS constantly threatening to kill you.

Ideas behind this film can only be described as a strange cocktail between the hit film Ghost and Korean blockbuster Failan. Watching the film through I could feel myself going round in circles. On one hand I could see this being an un-popular masterpiece. On the other I could see the film as a desperate attempt by the 'new generation' of Hong Kong cinema to follow in the footsteps of their prestigious past. The plot is one that could be told in such a better way. Being directed poorly and the exceptionally 'cheap' special effects really let the movie down. Karena lam and Nicholas Tse did what they could with what little they had to work with. As the movie prolongs, the outcome becomes obvious. Full marks for a story, full marks on acting. But the way in which the director portrays this story offended me. Scripted, I am sure this movie would look appealing to any actress or actor. BUT WAS AN INCREDIBLE LET DOWN. This is one film I really wouldn't mind the USA ripping off. Purely because they could do it better. After seeing this film, I am sure that no reputable director would touch this with a stick. This film will go in the waste bin of appalling attempts of Hong Kong cinema to revive itself after the success in the 70's- late1990's If you want a Tip.....go buy Failan

Fazzman rating ***