Writer: Jill Khoo

Writer Ratings:
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Effects: NA
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Watch this if you liked: "CJ7"

At first glance the movie seems like another sub-par comedy with poor attempts of humour and a weak plot to boot. The poster featuring the whole cast within a frame of mahjong tiles gives the impression that this is yet another "Kung Fu Mahjong" sequel. Fortunately, to a certain extent that wasn't the case for this movie.

As with every household with three wives you can expect some drama. The squabbling among the wives is quite hilarious at times, as they try to get hold of Mr Ho's wealth with all their shenanigans. Things move up a notch when Mr Ho brings home his love child, Ah Fai. At its core, the whole film is not about gambling or anything like that but about how happiness can't be bought with wealth. It's mostly a weak and predictable plot but it does leave a few surprises for the audience - not to mention life lessons somewhere in between.

However, some scenes do seem ridiculous at times. For instance, when Mr. Ho is in the house, he moves around in a motorised wheel chair and sometimes with a walking stick. However when he sets out to meet his old flame, he abseils down the walls with grace and walks around energetically with a backpack and his walking stick tucked at the side of his pack instead of in his hand. Well, I guess it's forgivable since the movie does have some funny and touching moments - like when Mr. Ho expresses his love to his third wife at the end of the movie.

The director of the film, Lam Tze Chung (Fatty in "Kung Fu Hustle" and the other Fatty in "Shaolin Girl") also plays a role in the film as... you guessed it - Fatty, the butler. Who knew that 'Fatty' was capable of making movies and popping out of thin air? Also, kudos to the star, Bosco Wong, as he was made for the role of the young and pure hearted Ah Fai. At some point he does seem more like a boy than a man. His fans are sure in for a treat this time. The only character that got me confused was Ciccy, the daughter whose significance was never revealed, besides being eye candy for Ah Fai. Also, which one of the wives was her mother? Hmmm...

The bottom line is that "The Luckiest Man" was better than I expected - not too dumb for it to be annoying and not too boring for it to be ignored.

Cinema Online, 23 September 2008