Saturday, July 09, 2005
Initial D

Just had the strangest experience of watching a movie I told myself I'd never watch.Just a week ago,one of my childhood friends,Beast,had asked me to watch a movie with him.Ok,that movie was Initial D.I simply told him that "come on,who watches Initial D?Anyway,the VCD will be out by end July and then you can buy it and watch it at home with your entire family.$10 for 3 people,much more worth it than $7 for one.And besides,what's there to see about the cars?Just go Orchard Road and see lah.So many cars there."

After bargaining with the fellow for about 1/2 hour,I outtalked (not convinced.I never convince or reason,I only outtalk) him into watching War Of The Worlds.Of course you know the end result...we wound up not watching any movies because the queue was too long (and the tickets too few) and played pool and drank beer the whole day instead.Not a bad way to spend a day.Drinking booze and shooting pool.

Anyway,then my friend,Elle,just called me out of nowhere and asked me to watch Initial D with her today.Oh...ok lor.How the hell do you say no to a gal?I do enjoy her company and I'd think vice versa so it was an enjoyable evening spent with her.

Well,the movie itself,I didn't thought it was a great movie,or even a good one at that.It was passable at best.Whatever narrative that the scriptwriters managed to come up with,it went like this:Two amateur race-drivers want to race each other but make a pact they must win a certain number of races before they challenge each other.So they race,race and race.Then they meet tofu boy who delivers tofu driving through a mountain road at breakneck speed.So they challenge and race,race,race.That's about it.Somewhere stuck in between are some mildly amusing lines and gags,a half-baked romance that didn't seem quite logical,a father-son relationship that's supposed to be loving but seems more antagonistic than anything else and a flurry of race scenes that was exciting at the start but then became increasingly repetitive.

Of the actors who starred in the movie,I wasn't really impressed with any of them.Jay Chou has made a passable debut,although I suspect the reason for him doing so is that he is essentially playing himself.A nonchalant,non-expressive passive character who stumbles on his words.The moments when he is required to emote,I thought he was found out.Check out the penultimate scene when he was driving his car after running away from Anne Suzuki.He was supposed to be sad and crying.I thought he was really forcing it and it didn't come across natural at all.But well,he's a singer,not an actor.

Of the other two young leads,Edison Chan and Shawn Yue,Chan has the benefit of a character that was better fleshed-out (slightly).But then,that isn't saying a lot.Because Yue's character was really a blur to me.First he was supposed to be the leader of his own amateur race team,then as the movie progressed,he increasingly became a sidekick to Chan.What happened?I don't get it.Chan's character is essentially a nice but competitive bloke.As if that means something.

As for the other characters,Anthony Wong,of course,showed that he can act but well,what's the exact nature of his character exactly?I thought he was like an enigma.He was at various times a drunkard,sage,lecher,loving dad and mentor.There is a never a point where I can quite place who he is and why he did things the way he did.Chapman To,as usual,plays the clown,sometimes to amusing effect,other times,a laboured performance.Kenny Bee...erm,I don't really have an impression of him.As for Chou's love interest played by Anne Suzuki,I thought the romance itself just suddenly bloomed out of nowhere after staying status quo for a number of years.How did that happen again?Because of a simple fight and a promise?Is it that easy to impress girls?I won't even mention Jordan Chan.He just appeared out of nowhere and then disppeared into nowhere.Didn't even know what's the point of his character being there besides to provide an excuse for a race.And the clincher is this,the movie just ended abruptly and I had to prop myself up to ask Elle,"Isn't that too sudden?What is that supposed to mean?"...I think the answer is a sequel.

Ok,I guess I must have trashed the movie quite a bit.Is it really that bad?No,I think not.But this is a movie in which I wish more thought was put into the characters and narrative,rather than just use them for one set-piece race after another.After you've seen one,you really have seen all.

6/10