Death Traps
Director: Wong Ting-lam
Year: 1960
Rating: 3.0
This 1960 production
from director Wang Tianlin is somewhat off the Cathay beaten path as it
diverges from their typical family oriented film into something more akin
to the dark shadows of film noir. The premise is intriguing and in noir tradition
the main protagonist is of less than stellar character, but unfortunately
the direction has little snap to it and there is no suspense or tension created
whatsoever. Helen Li Mei who was so good as the older unmarried woman in
“Between Tears and Laughter” is poorly used here as are a few of the other
actors with overacting being the word of the day. Part of my dissatisfaction
with this film also revolves around the “helpless woman” syndrome – something
that you don’t really see a lot of in Hong Kong films – especially from the
main character – but this film sadly reeks with it.
Jieyun (Le Mei) has a hobby as she terms it – the rest of us would call
alcoholism – which she picked up during her years as a hostess in a bar.
She basically prefers seeing the world through bleary eyes and never met
a drink that she didn’t like. Nevertheless she has managed to attract the
love of nice guy architect Shouli (Roy Chiao), but he wants her to stop imbibing
every night before he proposes to her. It gets a little tiring having to
carry her home every night. So one evening he very cleverly (or so he thinks)
puts on a show with another woman named Meigui (Ouyang Shafei) to make Jieyun
think that he is leaving her because of her little hobby. So her answer to
this – get stinking drunk.
In this very inebriated state she bumps into Mr. Cai in the parking lot
and he persuades her to come home with him because she is in no shape to
drive. Knowing that Mr. Cai isn’t exactly a boy scout, she proposes that
he kill this other woman or as she slurs any woman that marries Shouli and
writes him a check for $2,000. The next day she wakes up with a monster headache
and a faint memory of hiring Mr. Cai to kill someone - something that
must happen to everyone at least once in their life I am sure. Most of the
time though it’s just your cab driver and he isn’t listening to you anyway
– but in this case Mr. Cai is a dangerous man and Jieyun can’t find him
- of course she could have just put a stop on that check but she didn’t think
of that. Near deadly accidents begin to happen to Meigui – but then Shouli
tells her it was all a joke – ha ha – and proposes marriage – and she accepts.
Oops. Soon a man (Tien Ching) in a low brim felt hat and sunglasses seems
to be everywhere she is – even when she goes to Macau. And where better than
Macau for a film noir to play out.
This is a pretty good plot (and somehow reminiscent of an old American film
that I can’t recall the title of) if done with some edge and nerve plucking
tension, but there is none of that here. Everyone acts rather stupidly – gee
there has been a man standing across the street watching the house for hours
– maybe I should call the police – or at a minimum not leave my wife alone.
Jieyun spends much of the film looking scared and biting her fingers, but
won’t tell anybody about her little contract. It all feels poorly stitched
together like a cheap “B” film that is not helped by a fairly beat up and
at times washed out print source. A couple plusses about the film – there
are some nice location shots of Macau and this certainly posits a new solution
for drinking problems – just hire someone to kill you and see if you feel
like drinking – just be ready to duck.
