The Pom Pom Series
Pom Pom
Director: Joe Cheung
Year: 1984
Rating: 6.0
Delving back into 1980's Hong Kong comedy was more fun than I expected. The
comedy from that period is a bit unique for its style and full frontal silliness
- subtle isn't a word that comes to mind. It entails a lot of physical comedy
intertwined with gags, stunts, insults, pratfalls and just a general attitude
that anything that struck them as funny was included. Hong Kong just doesn't
make comedies like this anymore - it was very much a 1980's phenomenon for
the most part. It included the Aces Go Places series, the Lucy Star films,
the nutty Chow Yun-fat films when he wasn't killing people by the dozen,
the Happy Ghost series, the Hui Brothers, the Raymond Wong teenage films
and dozens of others. What nearly all of them had in common was a lack of
sophistication but many of them were quite funny and there was always a dose
of sweetness and friendship within. And they were filled with popular actors.
They were mean at times without being mean spirited.
Pom Pom is the first of four films starring Richard Ng and John Shum as incompetent
bumbling hang-dog cops not just in their professional lives but their personal
ones as well. Some would easily call them losers but their friendship, their
determination, their acceptance of their lowly status makes them sort of
heroes as well. Every man heroes. Always in trouble at work and love lives
that fall flat like a broken down omelet. But they keep trying. Ng and Shum
are two of the regulars of HK comedy appearing in so many of them during
this decade. Both of them quite distinct with Ng and his drooping moustache
and Shum with his out of control curly hair and spectacles.
This is a Bo Ho production - run by Sammo Hung - which means he can get anyone
he wants to show up for a film. Nobody says no to Sammo. That is one of the
pleasures of this film - popping in for cameos are Jacky Chan, Dick Wei,
three of the Lucy Stars (Sammo, Charlie Chin and Stanley Fung), Yuen Biao,
Lam Ching-ting, Mars, Wu Ma and Manfred Wong. And then among the players
with bigger roles there are a few of Sammo regulars - Chung Fat, Peter Chan
Lung and Taibo. But that is not all - as the police captain is Phillip Chan
- who almost always played a cop primarily because he was one once - rising
to Superintendent rank before he was an advisor on a film and fell in love
with the movies business and as the romantic angle Deannie Yip, one of Hong
Kong's better actors. Of course, a lot of this will mean zip to most viewers
not familiar with HK films of that period - but to those who are it was great
seeing all these faces again. They always bring a smile to my face like finding
a quarter deep down in your couch.
Among the comedy set pieces of which there are a few good ones - hiding the
drunk prostitute from his girlfriend in his apartment is quite clever and
the questioning of a suspect who they mistakenly think was raped by her step-mother
was funnier than it should have been - they are trying to bring down a drug
dealer, Mr Sha (Peter Chan Lung) but keep screwing up. Chiu (Ng) does his
best to romance Anna (Deannie) while Beethoven (Shum) tries to romance anyone.
It is about 80% comedy and 20% something else with a decent action scene
that fills out the last 15 minutes of the film - choreographed by Sammo and
his Stunt Team.
The Return of Pom Pom
Director: Phillip Chan
Year: 1984
Rating: 5.0
The boys are back in this sequel to the 1984 Pom Pom and things are as looney
as before but the helter-skelter nature of the comedy falls a little flat
at times. There is also the headache inducing screechy whining and shouting
performance of John Shum that makes you want to gag and drug him to keep
him quiet. Still it is genial enough with some good funny bits and by bringing
on two of my favorite action actors, it is still a worthwhile visit. This
film was produced by D&B rather than Bo Ho as was the first. D&B
was a partnership between Sammo Hung, John Shum and Dickson Poon, a very
wealth businessman who was once married to Michelle Yeoh. Pom Pom had tons
of cameos of familiar faces, but not so much this time around.
Chiu (Richard Ng) is walking down the isle to get married to his romantic
interest of the last film, Anna (Deannie Yip), when he and Beethoven (John
Shum) are called to save a man from jumping - which they do by Beethoven
pretending to be gay and in love with the jumper - thus shaming him out of
jumping. Take that as you will. But in fact Chiu and Anna do get married
and Beethoven moves in with them causing a bit of aggravation and a few laughs.
They have both been transferred under the command of the hard nosed Inspector
Tien (James Tin-chuen) who assigns them to catch a crook - instead they go
to the Playboy Club. Oddly, this entire thread of catching the thief just
disappears as they instead try and help their old Commander Inspector Chan
played again by Philip Chan, who also directs this film. In a bit of a con,
he had evidence money stolen out of his car - by a father/daughter team.
Not just any father/daughter team though but played by Lam Ching-ying and
Kara Hui.
These two were in the elite action group of that period and always a welcome
presence. Lam had basically been a stunt man or extra going back to 1970
- if you are quick you can spot him in loads of films. But now Sammo was
giving him larger and larger roles until he hit it big the year after this
with Mr. Vampire, which would make a much beloved actor in Hong Kong. And
Kara Hui had been a star for the Shaw Brothers for a number of years but
had hit it big in the 1980s when she starred in My Young Auntie and The Lady
is a Boss. But sadly this is a comedy not an action film, not even an action
comedy - so other than a few lovely minutes of Lam avoiding capture we get
barely a glimpse of his amazing physical talent. And with Kara even less.
But at least we get Kara as the new love interest of Beethoven and she looks
great. This did well enough at the box office so that another follow up was
on the horizon, but one with an even bigger star joining them.
Mr. Boo Meets
Pom Pom
Director: Wu Ma
Year: 1985
Rating: 6.0
I was looking at a short review that I wrote of this film perhaps 20 years
ago in which I clearly wasn't a fan of it. Now after watching it again and
having immersed myself a bit in the clownish idiotic comedy of the two previous
Pom Pom films, it seemed more enjoyable, more palatable - not really good
but good enough. It is really not much more than a series of skits that are
squashed into a so-called plot. Some of it is funny, some of it tedious –
but most of the good parts come from the addition of Mr. Boo or Michael Hui
to the film. It was an odd choice as Hui was a star in his own right and
mixing these two comedy styles – the frantic with the cerebral – could have
been a train wreck.
Hui was more than a star at the time – he was an institution. He had made
a series of remarkable comedies in the 1970's that were box-office hits but
also were largely responsible for re-igniting Cantonese as a film language.
For reasons too complicated to go into here - even though Cantonese was the
local language of Hong Kong, Mandarin had managed to become the dominant
language of choice in movies due to the films of The Shaw Brothers and Cathay
who were marketing to more than just Hong Kong - but to a Pan-Chinese audience.
That all began to slowly change with the Hui Brothers (Michael, Sam and Ricky)
and the new production company of Golden Harvest (which produced these films
as well). But it was more than just using Cantonese that endeared him to
the public, but also his portrayal of the Hong Kong working class trying
to struggle to make a buck, a little conniving, a little clever, a little
conman and full of ideas and heart often dashed but always back on their
feet. It reflected a Hong Kong that was on its way to becoming one of the
great cities in the world.
These early films from Hui are referred to as Mr. Boo films taken I believe
from how Japan marketed them - though in fact Hui plays different characters
in all of them. The most famous of these Mr. Boo films is The Private Eyes
in which Hui and his two brothers (Sam and Ricky) are detectives and it is
a brilliant mix of comedy and action. If you are going to watch just one
Hong Kong comedy, this would be my choice. In Mr. Boo Meets Pom Pom he is
in fact called Mr. Boo, but he is clearly not the detective from The Private
Eyes or any of his other films – just a good marketing idea.
About one-third into the film he begins to dominate it – though Beethoven
(John Shum) as his sidekick continues with his annoying shtick that is like
having to listen to a herd of squalling cats out your window all night long.
Chiu (Richard Ng) really takes a back seat in this one allowing his two colleagues
to do most of the comedic bits. In the three films Beethoven has gotten progressively
louder, more annoying and remarkably stupid while Chiu has mellowed out considerably,
influenced no doubt by the calming presence of his wife Anna (Deannie Yip).
So to a large extent this becomes the Michael Hui show but he never hits
the highs of his 1970 films.
Pom Pom and Mr. Boo are all policemen and meet during a hostage situation
at a bank and immediately take a dislike to each other. Mr. Boo comes off
as a bit of a stuffed shirt but a very smart one. Pom Pom call him in on
another case that they need help on – but then the film completely moves
away from police work when Mr. Boo discovers his wife (Terry Hu) is having
an affair with a wealthy business man (Stuart Ong). This takes up the remainder
of the film with Hui creating a couple enjoyable solo skits – one of him
trying to verbally convince himself that his wife is not having an affair
and is out till 4:30 playing Mahjong and another bit where he is trying to
convince Pom Pom that he is being severe with his wife to the extent of throwing
her across the room for not staying awake while he was gone – she is of course
not even there. The film has its moments – and I expect to move on to the
fourth film in the series, Pom Pom Strikes Again. Once you commit yourself
to something you have to follow it through.
Pom Pom Strikes
Back
Director: Teddy Yip
Year: 1986
Rating: 6.0
This is the final film in the Pom Pom films (I still have no real idea what
the term Pom Pom means) and it is surprisingly sweet and sentimental. Not
at all what is expected. It was like putting your hand into a bee hive and
coming out with honey. There is a certain gentleness between the three main
characters that has always been percolating right below the surface but this
time it is the center of the film. And this in a film that has way more action
than any of the three previous films - some five instances of action nicely
choreographed by Stephen Tung-wai. It is directed by Teddy Yip who had primarily
directed martial arts films previously; The Blade Spares None and The Eunuch
and The Black Tavern with the Shaw Brothers - but most of us would recognize
him from his nearly 100 appearances in films.
For reasons that are mysterious considering their general ineptitude, their
Inspector (Philip Can again) gives them the responsibility of protecting
a witness. A teenage girl played by May Lo (the wife of Jacky Cheung) is
the witness and she won't stay put putting her life in danger throughout.
Two killers (Michael Chan and Billy Ching) attempt to kill her more than
a few times leading to come comical action that is fun to watch.
But in the middle of this plot, they introduce another one which takes over
the remainder of the film. Due to a computer error Beethoven (John Sham)
is told that his friend Chiu (Richard Ng) has terminal cancer and it just
destroys him. He does everything he can to make the remaining days of his
friend's life comfortable. Ng of course has not been told and so is quite
puzzled. And then Beethoven has to tell Chiu's wife (Deannie Yip) that her
husband is dying. Of course, we know he isn't dying so it is funny but it
is still sentimentally effective. Now this is a comedy! I almost forgot that
and we get some of the usual silliness from our two boys but it is lower
key, amiable and thankfully they keep Shum a little less aggravating. It
was a nice way for this series to end. Again. not that any of these films
were great - mildly amusing I would say but they just don't make them like
this any more. Whether that is a good thing or not is up to the viewer.
