Trouble Maker (film)

Trouble Maker

Trouble Maker HK promo and DVD poster
Traditional 蠟筆小小生
Simplified 蜡笔小小生
Cantonese Nan but siao siao san
Directed by Chu Yin-ping
Produced by Wong Jing
Law Tiu-Wai
Written by Gwok Chang
Hsin Wei
Starring Takeshi Kaneshiro
Ng Man-tat
Athena Chu
Cinematography Chan Wing-Shu
Edited by Chen Bo-Wen
Production
company
Wong Jing's Workshop Ltd.
Distributed by Mei Ah Entertainment
Release dates
  • 25 March 1995
Running time
 85 minutes
Country Taiwan
Hong Kong
Language Mandarin
Cantonese
Box office HK $3,955,293.00

Trouble Maker (Chinese: 蠟筆小小生; Jyutping: Nan but siao siao san) is a 1995 joint Taiwan and Hong Kong romance comedy film directed by Taiwanese director Chu Yin-ping and produced by Hong Kong director Wong Jing. Starring Taiwanese actor singer Takeshi Kaneshiro, Hong Kong actor Ng Man-tat, Hong Kong actress Athena Chu and Taiwanese child actor Steven Hao Shao Wen. The Hong Kong Chinese title 蠟筆小小生 translates as "Crayon Siao Siao San" which is derived from the popular Japanese manga "Crayon Shin-chan" about a mischievous little boy. The movie was first released in Taiwan under the title "Fart King 臭屁王". The movie was renamed and dubbed in Cantonese for all the Taiwanese actors to cater to the Hong Kong audiences. Hong Kong actors Ng Man-tat, Athena Chu and Gabriel Wong Yat-San (known by his nickname "Small Turtle") filmed their lines in Cantonese which was dubbed over by an actor for the Mandarin version. The movie was released in Taiwan on 25 March 1995 and then a week later on 1 April 1995 in Hong Kong.

Plot

Siao San (Steven Hao Shao Wen) is a mischievous little boy from a well to do family, but he is unhappy with his father's new marriage to a younger women because he feels neglected by his father. After being punished by his father for playing a trick on his new step grandmother who was picking on him, San decides to run away from home. He finds a little boy in the park the next morning and changes clothes with him.

Tat (Ng Man-tat) is a middle aged High School grounds keeper who has a crush on a blind girl (Athena Chu) that sells flowers on the side of the streets. Every day he comes to see her, pretending to be a rich man just to buy a banquet of flowers from her only to give it back to her as an gift. One day while at the park Tat is hit with a bat by a women chasing San for stealing candy from a baby. To retaliate Tat uses the bat that hit him to throw at the women but hits a police officer instead. Both Tat and San run in the same direction away from the officer. While fleeing from the officer they both get familiar with each other and work together to rid the officer. Once they lose the officer San decides to tag onto Tat and follows him through the streets. Tat tells him to stop following him as he can't care for him, San does not care and follows him all the way to the school where he works at and lives.

At the High School we meet Ah Mo (Takeshi Kaneshiro) who is signing autographs for the girls at school because he is handsome and cute. He leaves them to follow his crush Ah Jen (Chen Yu) in to the school. He uses all kinds of immature tactics to get her attention only to be ignored by her. Next we find out that Mo and Jen are in the same class "5D", which also happens to be the worst class in school, with full of misfits. A new teacher arrives with an arrogant attitude telling Tat he is sure he can handle class "5D". The class plays all kinds of tricks on the new teacher causing him to pass out and having to be carried out of the school in an ambulance stretcher.

That night seeing how pitiful San looks, Tat decides to take him in. The next day they had out to the city to cause a day of mischief. Tat stops by to chat with the blind flower girl. He asks her if there is a cure for her blindness. She tells him yes but it is very expensive and cost HKD $500,000. He ask her if she has that much money and she tells him no that's why she diligently works hard every day selling flowers on the streets to save enough money so she can have the surgery.

Seeing how class "5D" has gone through eight teachers already since the school year started, the school principal decides to personally teach the class himself. First thing he does is give them a pop quiz and threatens to expel anyone who fails the quiz. The class constantly plays tricks on the principal in-order to cheat on the quiz. The school decides to offer a HKD $500,000 salary to anyone who is able to handle class "5D". San tells Tat that he should go for it, Tat tell San to forget it since it's a suicide job. San tells Tat that he can refer him to someone that can teach him kung fu so he can combat class "5D", but Tat thinks he is exaggerating and does not believe him.

After school Mo sees Jen being harassed by a guy and tries to defend her, but he gets beaten up to look like a panda face instead. Soon the whole school realize that Mo is really a weak coward who pretends to be brave. That same night San brings a Shaolin monk to personally meet Tat but Tat thinking the monk is a bum shoos him the monk away. The monk shows his martial arts skills while leaving and Tat becomes a believer. He ask San to bring him to the monks temple to get accepted as an apprentice. At the temple Tat learns all kinds of Shaolin combat and defensive skill.

Will he be able to handle class "5D" once he finishes his training?

Cast

Filming

Taiwan promo poster showing the movie's original title.

The movie was filmed around the Daan district of Taipei, Taiwan. Noticeable places in the movie are the "Shangri La Far Eastern Plaza Hotel", "The Mall", and "Daan Forest Park". Ng Man-tat, Athena Chu and Gabriel Wong Yat-San who were constant collaborators on Stephen Chow movies at that time where brought on the movie to cater to Hong Kong audiences for the Hong Kong release of the film since comedy movies starring Chow and Ng were a big hit in Hong Kong during that period. The storyline of the film is supposedly to be based in Hong Kong but noticeable things that differentiate Hong Kong and Taiwan can be seen in the movie (such as the taxi cabs in the movie are yellow instead of red and the currency has Sun Yat-sen on it instead of Queen Elizabeth II because Hong Kong was still a British Colony when the movie was filmed).

Production credits

External links