A Fishy Story
Director: Anthony Chan Yau
Year: 1989
Rating: 8.0
Holly Golightly in
Hong Kong. This film is a lovely, charming take on Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
Maggie Cheung simply lights up the screen with a smile as radiant as an exploding
star. The camera swoons over her and delights in a sparkling close up every
few minutes. It is a love affair between Maggie and the camera. Audrey Hepburn
is absolutely my favorite actress of all time and she was one of a kind.
But so is Maggie. During the Opening credits to "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes".
there are some wonderful black and white photos of street demonstrations
juxtaposed with pictures of Maggie tring on a fur coat. It sets the mood
of this romantic fairy tale perfectly.
Set in the 1960's, Maggie plays an aspiring
actress who leads wealthy men on in hopes of furthering her career. Money
and travel are the two things she wants most in the world. Kenny Bee is an
unlicensed cab driver that lives upstairs who is occasionally visited by a
wealthy married woman who leaves her appreciation on the bedside table.
There is some sweet comedy as well. My favorite
bit being Maggie learning English from an Indian and then going to a high
class restaurant and in perfectly accented Indian English asking for one
curry chicken.
Though it does not take place in a pouring
rain, the ending has Hollywood written all over it.
