Chinese Odyssey 2002
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| Chinese Odyssey 2002 | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover of Chinese Odyssey 2002 |
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| Directed by | Jeffrey Lau |
| Produced by | Wong Kar-wai |
| Starring | Tony Leung Chiu Wai Faye Wong Zhao Wei |
| Release date(s) | 2002 |
| Country |  Hong Kong |
| Language | Cantonese |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Chinese Odyssey 2002 (simplified Chinese: 天下无双; traditional Chinese: 天下無雙; pinyin: Tianxia Wushuang) is a 2002 Hong Kong movie directed by Jeffrey Lau and produced by Wong Kar-wai. It stars Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Faye Wong, Zhao Wei and Chang Chen. It is a Lunar New Year film, a practice of the Hong Kong movie industry to release a movie (usually a comedy) so as to boost movie ticket sales during the holiday season.
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[edit] Plot outline
The film is set in Ming Dynasty China. Ah Long (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) is the town bully, known for his boorish manners and reckless attitude which endeared him to no one, save his sister Feng (Vicki Zhao) who has a curious penchant for cross-dressing. At this point of the film, it can be assumed that both these siblings would virtually have no chance at marriage due to their misfits.
Faye Wong is cast as a runaway princess who was also dressed as a man, a disguise which fooled both Long and Feng and the former immediately decided that he liked the new-found friend so much that he would entrust his sister's hand in marriage to the mistaken identity princess. The princess of course would not marry another woman and tried to fend off Long's suggestions of a match but she also likes Long after a while.
The Emperor (Chang Chen) also left his palace temporarily in order to search for his missing sister. He dresses like a commoner and by a strange twist of fate, ends up knowing Long and Feng and took interest in the latter whom he tries to court. His intentions to leave the palace was also buoyed by the fact that he was unhappy and lonely at the court and wanted to escape the smothering influence of the Queen Mother (Rebecca Pan) who played an Empress Dowager dictatorial rule in the actions of her son.
The Princess was also assisted by her 'fairy godmother' (Athena Chu) in marrying her match. The Queen Mother heard of her wayward children and storms Long's house, where her children were holed up, only to hear that they wished to marry two commoners with unpleasant and eccentric tendencies. She agrees to give her children a chance at their personal happiness and sets them to particular tasks of which the Emperor accomplishes his easily and wins Feng's hand in marriage. Only Long was unable to do likewise and the Queen Mother forbids the lovers to marry.
The ending is unique, against those who regard it as easily predicted as Long eventually married the Princess and all ends happily ever after. The entire plot is wrought with the desire to find true love although the entire film is meant to be a comedy.
[edit] Cast and roles include
- Tony Leung Chiu Wai - Li Yilong
- Faye Wong - Princess Wushuang
- Zhao Wei - Phoenix, sister of Li Yilong
- Chang Chen - Emperor Zheng De
- Roy Cheung - Chu Liangshim
- Athena Chu - Amour Amour
- Rebecca Pan - Queen mother
- Jan Lamb - Commentary (voice)
- Chan Fai-hung - Emperor (voice)
- Goo-Bi GC - Phoenix (voice)
- Eric Kot
- Jeffrey Lau - President Chen
- Ning Jing
[edit] Awards
- 22nd Annual Hong Kong Film Awards:
- Nomination, Best Actress, 2002 (Faye Wong)
- Nomination - Best Art Direction (Tony Au Ting-Ping)
- Nomination - Best Costume Design (William Cheung Suk-Ping)
- Nomination - Best Original Film Score (Frankie Chan Fan-Kei, Roel A. Garcia)
- 9th Annual Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards:
- Winner, Best Picture
- Winner, Best Actress (Faye Wong)
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Chinese Odyssey 2002 at the Internet Movie Database
- Entry at lovehkfilm.com
- Movie website (Taiwan, in Chinese)
