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神探馬如龍 (1991)
Inspector Pink Dragon


Reviewed by: MrBooth
Date: 10/23/2005
Summary: 5/10 - mediocre

Lawrence Cheng is the "Pink Dragon" of the film, a cop who is sleazy, slimy, cowardly and disaster-prone - a role Cheng suits perfectly, being one of the most irritating men on earth!

Cheng bumps into ex-classmates Rosamund Kwan and Tony Leung Ka-Fai, and is drawn into the case of a corrupt land developer, meaning he has to go undercover and hang out with Rosamund a lot (to the distress of his fiance, Nina Li Chi).

The film has some good comedy moments, but the overall story is totally done-to-death, and Cheng is soooo irritating it isn't amusing (which I presume it was meant to be). Rosamund barely even tries to act, and just coasts by on being good looking. Nina Li Chi makes much more effort and is quite funny, which makes it a bit galling that her character gets shat on throughout the film.

There's very little action, meaning the DVD artwork covered in people with guns is very misleading - there's a bit of a shootout right at the end but it's entirely mundane stuff.

So, generally, not a film I had a lot of fun with. If you're a fan of Nina Li Chi it's definitely worth a look, but be prepared to get angry. If you're a fan of Lawrence Cheng... well, get psychiatric help first, and if you're still a fan then I guess you'll want to see it :p

Reviewer Score: 5

Reviewed by: Inner Strength
Date: 01/24/2002
Summary: Good

Although only available on the Mega Star VCD release (and unsubtitled), Inspector Pink Dragon is well worth seeing. I first saw this several years ago, but managed to get hold of the VCD again, and glad I did as I had forgotten how much I had enjoyed it.

Gordon Chan was one of the comedy masters 10 years ago, making films such as Fight Back To School, Yuppie Fantasia, Fist Of Legend, and this is just as good as any of those. I think the main reason there are no other reviews here for this, is because not many people seem to watch VCDs, and only rely on the minority of DVD releases. But if you come across this, you must watch it if you enjoy the Stephen Chow style of comedies. Another rarity in Hong Kong at the time has this film shot in sync-sound.

The main story is a police one, and as suggested by the title it has the inspiration of the Pink Panther, although not so much ripping off. Some of the action scenes look like it’s more of an action film at times, which works out quite well. It’s not as silly as something like ‘Pom Pom’, and yet not as serious as say ‘Curry And Pepper’, but it is sort of in between those. Lawrence plays a cop, who meets a woman (Rosamund Kwan), and falls in love with her. After his friend is killed, he goes on a mission to find the murderer, and encounters countless problems…including Nina Li. He also realises that Roasmund is more trouble than she is worth as she is always getting him caught up in trouble, The plot is nothing much, but the comedy IS funny, and this is one of the more standout movies in 1991 I would say.

Lawrence Cheng & Nina Li are very funny as usual, and Rosamund Kwan acted especially well in more serious scenes. One thing that did annoy me is that there is a lot of commentary through the movie, like Stephen Chow & Ng Man Tat did in ‘Crazy Safari’. The film also slows up a bit in the middle and becomes a little boring, but soon changes again.

Tony Leung Ka Fei is also in this and plays another cop, even though he is killed after 20 minutes into the film. But little remorse is shown to him I think, even though it is supposed to be a comedy.

Rating: 3.5/5

(This rating is based on the year & genre of this release, it’s not being compared to movies made in years before or afterwards.)