Search - Where a Good Man Goes on DVD

Rare performance Hong Kong drama

John Lewis | Dallas, TX USA | 02/13/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Lau Ching Wan gives a strong but over-the-top performance as a very rough and mean natured gangster just out of prison, who has been abandoned by his gang. This is kind of a typical story about a very rough guy who has buried very deep a somewhat heart of gold. Both are really taken to extreme in typical Hong Kong style, and as Johnny To often does in many of his films about violent excess in the Hong Kong underworld. So this movie will not appeal to many western tastes. The contrast really is not believable, so it does detract some from the film. But this is made up for by Lau Chin Wan's supurb acting, and by Johnny To's tight directing. This is well worth watching, and is a good, rare Hong Kong drama."

"I am not scared of anything. I am only afraid of one thing

morgoth | omaha, NE | 10/08/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Wow, I thought I rambled, but Lau Ching wan takes it to another level! His character is so complex, and there's so many things that I pick up on in his performance when I rewatch this movie. I didn't really know how to fit these thoughts into my review, so I thought I would just point it out right away. That quote above is classic rambling from Lau Ching Wan's character. I don't know how I didn't get annoyed of his character, but Lau Ching Wan just gives such a great performance. I kept wanting to hear what he had to say, because the more he rambles on, the more violent he gets with his words. Great stuff.

Lau Ching Wan stars as a gangster who just got out of jail, and right away he gets into a fight. After his brawl he decides to stay at a really cheap inn run by a poor widow played by Ruby Wong. They slowly begin a relationship, and I found it well done and touching. Lau Ching Wan's character is over the top with how rude he is, but he does a great job at it. I really found myself liking his character, even though his character is supposed to be almost completely unlikeable. One scene I liked was when Lau Ching Wan literally forces the owner of the inn and her son to go out and have a day of fun with him. It is quite an odd scene. So they go out for the day, and do all types of fun things. For instance Lau Ching Wan shows them what part of a wall he painted while he was in prison. But seriously, there are a lot of good things about this movie. There's one hilarious scene where Lau throws a big fit screaming at the inn owner that his room has been taken. He couldn't have been a bigger baby. She doesn't say a word, politely shows him to his room, and when the door opens, the drunken Lau Ching Wan figures out after a few seconds that he must have been in the wrong room before. Such a great scene. There's some more scenes like that, and that's the main reason the movie is worth watching. Plus you have those great small touches that Johnnie To is known for. Like when the inn owner is cleaning Lau's room, she sees a big pile of money in his drawer, and she shuts the drawer right away. Good scene with good character development for both actors. But then what Johnnie To does is expand on it. About 4 days pass, and she is cleaning his room, and once again sees his drawer open, but this time that big pile of money is nothing but a few bills. Like I said, it's just a small touch.

While this movie isn't that exciting, and it's anything but original, I loved the directing job, the acting, dialogue, the short action scenes, and I found myself laughing outloud at least a few times. Lau Ching Wan + Johnnie To. How can you go wrong with that? You can't. And you also have Lam Suet giving a great performance. This is back when he actually got good roles. Nowadays it seems like he just gets really small roles or cameos in Johnnie To movies. Don't expect a great thriller or something really exciting, just an enjoyable movie.


Rating- 4/5


The subtitles on the Universe DVD are well written, but they go by a bit too fast most of the time. Sound is good. 5.1 and 3.0 Cantonese and Mandarin tracks. And the picture quality isn't exactly HD, but still very good."