To Western eyes, Stephen Chow's comedies are uneven. "Kung Fu Hustle" is clearly a masterpiece, but why is "Shaolin Soccer" considered so funny? "From Beijing with Love" is an early Chow effort that does work for both East and West, perhaps because the Bond and Star Wars scenes and pretensions that he parodies are so immediately recognizable.
Westerners love violent films with massive body counts, but have a strong and somewhat contradictory aversion to the gore that would ensue in real life, so like most Asian action films, this one would require some heavy editing for Western release. The juxtaposition of death and mutilation with absurd comedy is not Hollywood's style. From Beijing with Love is definitely not for children. But there are some good laughs here for adult Bond fans with strong stomachs, especially those who remember the lamentable Roger Moore effort, "The Man with the Golden Gun."
Worth watching, and the soundtrack is surprisingly good too.
Westerners love violent films with massive body counts, but have a strong and somewhat contradictory aversion to the gore that would ensue in real life, so like most Asian action films, this one would require some heavy editing for Western release. The juxtaposition of death and mutilation with absurd comedy is not Hollywood's style. From Beijing with Love is definitely not for children. But there are some good laughs here for adult Bond fans with strong stomachs, especially those who remember the lamentable Roger Moore effort, "The Man with the Golden Gun."
Worth watching, and the soundtrack is surprisingly good too.