A CHINESE ODYSSEY PART ONE - PANDORA'S BOX
Cantonese: Sai yau gei dai yat baak ling yat wooi ji yuet gwong bo hap
Mandarin: Xi you ji di yi bai ling yi hui zhi yue guang bao he
English: Journey to the West: Moonlight Treasure Box

A CHINESE ODYSSEY PART TWO - CINDERELLA
Cantonese: Sai yau gei daai git guk ji sin lei kei yuen
Mandarin: Xi you ji da jie ju zhi xian lu qi yuan
English: Journey to the West: Fairy Slipper Magic Encounter

Jeff Lau Chun-wai wrote (as "Kei On") directed, and co-stars in this opulent, two-part send-up of the classic novel Xi you ji (usually translated as "Journey to the West"), a fantasy-filled dramatization of how Buddhism was introduced to China, with Stephen Chiau Sing-chi ideally cast as its hero, Monkey King Sun Houzi (Sun, the Monkey). Part One opens with The Goddess of Happiness sentencing The Longevity Monk (Law Kar-ying) and his disciples to be reincarnated as mortals. Their banishment from Heaven is retribution for the transgressions of The Monkey King, who sought to eat his master, as consumption of The Monk's flesh engenders immortality. Five centuries later, The Monkey King's new human persona - a bandit chieftain named Joker (also Chiau; image), who is unaware of his former existence - finds himself caught between two immortal sisters, The 30th. Madam (Yammie Nam Kit-ying) and Pak Jing-jing (Karen Mok Man-wai). Once jilted by The Monkey King, Jing-jing falls for Joker, only to be poisoned by her jealous sibling. Seeking to prevent her impending death, Joker uses a magic vessel (the "Pandora's Box" of the English title) to travel back in time but accidentally ends up 500 years in the past.


Part Two finds the stranded Joker falling for the beautiful Spider Web immortal Lin Zixia (Athena Chu Yan; image), who is actually half of Buddha's lampwick in corporeal form. Now existing prior to the time of The Monkey King's subjugation, Joker sets about rectifying his romantic confusion and changing the past, but must first contend with numerous adversaries, including Zixia's shrewish sister, Lin Qingxia (Ada Choi Siu-fan), and the ferocious King Bull, who lords over an army of minions and has his own personal legion of giant fleas!


The cast handles both the comedic and dramatic facets of their roles well and the script's sentimental passages avoid being overwrought or cloying (the various starcrossed romances are genuinely affecting). But these are Stephen Chiau films after all, so poignant moments are soon offset by people getting kicked, punched or otherwise thwacked in the crotch. Those unfamiliar with Chinese mythology will not be helped by the confusing subtitles but can still savor both films' technical merits; in particular, Tony Ching Siu-tung's zero gravity action choreography and the wonderfully baroque and colorful production design. The character make-up is superb, with a barrage of extras transformed into animal-headed warriors, while supporting actors, like frequent Chiau sidekick Ng Man-tat, embody various otherworldly beings, including soul-sucking demons, zombies, and a giant spider. The one serious drawback is the soundtrack, which includes several cues from Frankie Chan and Roel A. Garcia's moody, romantic score for Wong Kar-wai's ASHES OF TIME that are ill-suited to these lighter moments here. There are a number of in-jokes, including the inevitable jest about Lin Qingxia and the like-named fantasy film queen Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia (the same name presented in different Mandarin translation forms) and the latter's on and offscreen paramours, Chin Han and Charlie Chin Hsiang-lin.

Mega Star #MS/DVD/399/HK (Hong Kong label) Cantonese (Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS) and Mandarin (Dolby Digital 5.1) Language Tracks (both post-synched) Optional Subtitles In English, Chinese (Traditional or Simplified), Japanese, and Korean 12 Chapters Illustrated in the Menu With (Tiny) Clips Enhanced for 16:9 Displays Letterboxed (1.78:1) NTSC Format 87 Minutes Contains comedic violence and crude content

DVD menu courtesy Mega Star.

Mega Star #MS/DVD/HK/400/HK (Hong Kong label) Cantonese (Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS) and Mandarin (Dolby Digital 5.1) Language Tracks (both post-synched) Optional Subtitles In English, Chinese (Traditional or Simplified), Japanese, and Korean 12 Chapters Illustrated in the Menu With (Tiny) Clips Enhanced for 16:9 Displays Letterboxed (1.79:1) NTSC Format 100 Minutes Contains moderate violence, comedic violence and crude content

DVD menu courtesy Mega Star.

A CHINESE ODYSSEY PART ONE and PART TWO are available at Poker Industries.