English (Symphony, PVR Cinemas, Innovative Multiplex)

Cast: Stephen Chow, Siu Lung Leung, Yuen Qui, Chi Chung Lam

Director: Stephen Chow

A creation of Stephen Chow, writer-director-star of the film, Kung Fu Hustle is a moronic action-comedy set in China in the 40s. Sad-sack duo Sing (Chow) and his sidekick (Lam) dream of joining the monstrous Axe Gang. Their attempts to bully the denizens of an over-crowded slum, ‘Pig Sty,’ by pretending to be Axe Gang-members, go in vain when its people turn out much stronger than themselves. Curlers in hair, ciggie in mouth, Pig Sty’s landlady (Qui) rules the roost when she’s not husband-beating, that is. Her deadliest weapon is her supersonic voice that can literally blow one’s brains out. Her blood-curdling screams draw the attention of the original Axe gang to the low-key hovel. And mayhem prevails!

Kung Fu Hustle is one crazy film. There is a storyline if you persist, but the hullabaloo is mostly about action choreographer Yuen Wo Ping’s mindblowing fight sequences. Brace yourself for the blood-soaked slapstick humour that greets you, and you might just appreciate this winner in the ‘Best Film’ category at the 24th Hong Kong Film Awards, that holds the record for being the widest cinematic release of a foreign language in USA.

PH