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黐線枕邊人 (1991)
Slickers Vs Killers


Reviewed by: cal42
Date: 12/15/2008
Summary: Occasonally entertaining little rarity.

“Success” Hung (Sammo Hung) is a top mobile phone salesman, hampered by new recruit Cheng (Carol “Do Do” Cheng). One day, Hung witnesses a gangland murder, though his police officer wife does not believe him. After another run-in with the killers, Hung goes on the run with his psychiatrist (Godenzi), his straying wife and her cop partner.

SLICKERS VS KILLERS is typical of the era, with Sammo’s character a Yuppie salesman. We have the usual blend of gags and action scenes, but the focus is on comedy and in particular the mo lei tau brand of comedy that was just becoming mega-popular at the time thanks to Stephen Chow Sing-Chi. The supporting cast is fairly decent thanks to Carol Cheng’s presence and a cameo by Richard Ng. Jacky Cheung, however, hams it up beyond the ridiculous with his portrayal of a disturbed killer on the back of BULLET IN THE HEAD’s success. In one scene he delivers a soliloquy that appears to be an attempt at grabbing a Golden Horse award and it’s so out of place in this screwball comedy that you start to wonder if his character was written in from another screenplay. Lam Ching-Ying is also on hand, not as a Taoist priest this time, but as Jacky Cheung’s fellow killer. Rounding off the cast is Sammo’s mistress and soon-to-be wife Joyce Godenzi as the protagonist’s psychiatrist.

After PEDICAB DRIVER, Sammo seemed to have had a crisis of taste, and I’d been warned a couple of times that SLICKERS VS KILLERS contained more dubious material, in particular some dodgy comedy about rape. Well, when the scene in question started (it’s convoluted, but in a nutshell Carol Cheng’s character thinks she’s been raped by Sammo) I have to admit I thought it was quite funny and reminded me of a similar scene in a Norman Wisdom film, believe it or not. However, when the characters go to the local police station so that Cheng can report the “crime”, things start to get a bit cringeworthy. I would like to think that even in Hong Kong in the early 90’s, a woman reporting a rape could do so in a private room where officers of both sexes couldn’t lean over to hear the lurid details and the accused doesn’t sit on a chair right in front of her. Christ. Anyway, this scene aside, the usual rules of Hong Kong comedy are in force: some of it is funny, some of it isn’t and some of it just doesn’t translate at all.

The action scenes are pared down somewhat in this film to make way for the comedy. What’s here is pretty decent, but don’t expect another PEDICAB DRIVER. I think the film could have done with a bit more Carol Cheng, and less of the fruitless relationship Sammo has with his insipid cop wife and her obvious lover-in-waiting. There is a little tension in the final scenes of the film though, when the gang are hiding out in a deserted municipal building, but I must admit I got a bit lost at the end when even those on the same side started duffing each other up. Having waited so long to see the film (it's virtually impossible to get hold of these days, and laser disc copies of the film sell for big bucks on eBay), it’s obviously never going to live up to the expectations one can’t help putting on it. But I thought SLICKERS VS KILLERS was reasonably entertaining; not as good as his late 80’s output, but certainly better than some other films he put out at this time. I’d say it’s probably about on a par with OWL VS DUMBO.

Reviewer Score: 7

Reviewed by: Inner Strength
Date: 11/16/2002
Summary: Average


For nonsense comedies, this one is a little more interesting (because of the stars mainly). But at the end of the day, it is still just that…nonsense.

2/5


Reviewed by: foleyisgravy
Date: 12/24/2001
Summary: Slick flick!

Underrated Sammo film that I liked a lot. Sammo plays a cell-phone salesman who is witness to a triad murder and is pursued by not only the killers (Lam Ching Ying and Jacky Cheung) who want to prevent him from talking, but by triad members who think he committed the murder. So Sammo goes into hiding with his policewoman wife as well as his psychiatrist (Sammo's real-life wife Joyce Mina Godenzi). Also in hiding with them is his wife's police partner (Ngai Sing) who secretly wants Sammo out of the picture so he can take Sammo's wife for his own.
Very funny film with some great comic interaction between Sammo and Carol "DoDo" Cheng who plays his business rival. All the comedy is topped off with a great fight finale with Godenzi and Yu Li battling it out while Sammo takes on Ngai Sing in an awesome brawl.
Well worth buying in my opinion.


Reviewed by: hokazak
Date: 12/09/1999

Interesting Samo Hung comedy in which he stars, as a henpecked salesman who happens to know how to fight pretty well, married to a cop who may be being wooed by a coworker, and whose therapist (played by Hung's real- life wife, Joyce Godenzi) isn't much help. When he witnesses a couple of hapless killers (played by Jacky Cheung and Lam Ching Ying) icing a rival triad member, he becomes #1 of their upcoming victims list. Trouble is, he's known for his predilection for tall tales, and nobody believes him, at first - especially not his wife and her would-be paramour on the force, who goes out of his way to discredit Hung's story. Lots of plot complications ensue, involving attempted assassinations, both rival gangs, bad cops, romantic double crosses, and a strange witness protection setup. Funny, but with surprisingly cynical/dark streak running through it... Good action sequences, as one would expect from Samo!


Reviewed by: hkcinema
Date: 12/08/1999

Stuck in a bad marriage, fighting with a new sales partner, Success Hung's life worsens when he becomes a witness to a triad hit. There is a general disregard for genre (thriller/comedy/drama/action) boundaries, and some unusually dark moments, often back-to-back with characteristically un-PC and ridiculous gags - a blend rarely found in Western movies, at least until recently.

[Reviewed by Iain Sinclair]


Reviewed by: spinali
Date: 12/08/1999
Summary: NULL

Cellular phone salesman Success Hung (Samo Hung) kills amember of a triad gang in self-defense, inspiring vicious Jackie Cheung to seek vengeance. Success's policewoman wife (Lu Li) and therapist (Cheung Man) soon find themselves at odds with Do Do Cheng for his affections; Jacky Cheung appears in a second role as Lu Li's upright partner. A nice touch: after the bad guys are vanquished, all the good guys punch each other until they drop.

(2.5/4)



[Reviewed by Steve Spinali]

Reviewer Score: 6