Writer: Sophia Ling

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Watch this if you liked: "Mr. & Mrs. Smith", James Bond, Austin Powers

Chinese-U.S co-productions seem to be the trend these days and the latest one to hit our shores is "My Lucky Star". Directed by veteran American TV series director Dennie Gordon, this film combines romance, comedy and a hint of spy action.

The film begins its journey in Beijing where Sophie, a quirky travel agent and struggling comic book artist, sets out on a romantic adventure that takes her to Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau. Along the way, she meets David (Leehom Wang), and the duo set out to make the world a better place.

Zhang Ziyi reprises her role as Sophie from the 2009 film "Sophie's Revenge". Think of a less melancholy Bridget Jones and Zhang Ziyi will deliver. Zhang Ziyi is usually seen as the petite kung fu fighting Asian chick in films and Leehom Wang is better known as a singer but the chemistry between the two on screen was surprisingly believable. At some point, most single ladies in the audience will be able to relate to her plight and secretly hope for a dashing international man of mystery to appear.

Director Dennie Gordon maintained the same quality that we see in most of her TV series. There were comic book elements infused into some scenes that provided comic relief and added a touch of quirkiness to the film. Overall, the film wasn't too demanding in terms of special effects but there was a fair bit of stunt work involved when it came to the action scenes.

There's nothing particularly spectacular or unfavourable about "My Lucky Star" that deserves a mention but there are probably more cons than pros with this one. Sophie's excessive ideals on romance could have been toned down a bit and there were one too many scenes in which she was either too high pitched or too whiny which seems to be a trademark for Chinese films. On the upside, the films quirky character makes the cons bearable.

"My Lucky Star" uses the textbook recipe for an entertaining film. It's got the comedy, a bit of action here and there, a hint of international intrigue, a whole lot of romance and most importantly, it's got eye candy with Zhang Ziyi and Leehom Wang. That should be enough of an excuse to watch this film.

If you have not seen "Sophie's Revenge", there's no need to run out and find a copy immediately. "My Lucky Star" has a self-contained storyline that doesn't require a catch-up.

Cinema Online, 09 September 2013