AttheHongKongMovies

At the Hong Kong Movies: 600 Reviews from 1988 Till The Handover
By Paul Fonoroff

Now let me just say right off the bat I have NOT read this entire book of reviews. I do have a life. It might not be as sexy as yours, but I do enjoy the life I have. So I have gone to this book off and on since I picked it up to find a few diamonds in the rough so to speak. As the title says this tomb has 600 reviews in it and let me say that Paul goes right into it from page one. No foreplay here folks this thing is cover to cover reviews and no filler. His reviews start in late 1988 and go right up to the middle of 1997. He covers everything here. So if you are a die-hard fan of Hong Kong Cinema you might give this a gander.

Since this is in chronological order it is not broken up in genres, which I hate to be honest. Before each review he lists the title the major players (both the English & Chinese) and when it was released. Along with it not having a single picture inside the covers it is just nothing, but his insights into each film. He does offer up a lot of funny tidbits and you can tell with a few of the reviews he had a good time doing them keeping them light hearted when I am sure it gets old after a while. Most of the reviews are a page to a page and a half in length and he does not dabble with a lot of lofty words and just cuts to the meat and taters! Fans of CAT III flicks will enjoy this and any of the films that are the soft-core adult fare because he covers them a ton and really breaks them down.

I am a novice when it comes to Hong Kong cinema so for me this book is great because he gives the reviews in pill form and there is not a ton to digest when reading them. They are straight forward and to the point. If you are a seasoned veteran when it comes to these sorts of flicks then this might be a good resource to just jog the old memory bank on what you have or haven’t seen and to help you track down titles you may be missing in your collection. Remember this book is NOT sexy as far as what it has to offer. There is no real behind-the-scenes stories, interviews, pictures, essays, etc…I really feel it is just for us fans of cinema to wet our appetite. If you can find it on the cheap as I did I would suggest picking it up and having a good time catching up with you buddies on the other side of the pond.

reviewed by Jason Payne