Reviewed by: cal42 Date: 05/20/2007 Summary: Hong Kong goes Sci-Fi! Hong Kong has never been a great producer of Sci-Fi. I don’t know whether it’s a cultural thing or simply a case of they never had the budget and technology (until relatively recently) to create credible films in the field. I LOVE MARIA puts a typical 80’s Hong Kong spin on the genre - brutal gun violence goes hand-in-hand with family-friendly humour, the occasional hint of romance rears its head and scenes of touching redemption warm the heart. Except this time there are bloody big robots all over the place. The misleadingly named Hero Gang is terrorising Hong Kong with bank robberies carried out by a seemingly invincible robot called Pioneer I. Curly (John Shum – I think all of his characters were called Curly), a member of the Special Weapons branch of the police, and Whiskey (Tsui Hark), a former member of the Hero gang, team up when they are both accused of betraying their respective factions. They are attacked by Pioneer II – an android modelled on the Hero Gang’s main female boss Maria (Sally Yeh) by her lover who is looking for a permanent replacement that will never age or deteriorate. Curly and Whiskey, who are occasionally aided and abetted by reporter TQ Zhuang (Tony Leung), get the best of the droid purely by accident and begin to reprogram her to do their bidding, leading to a showdown with the Hero Gang, a master who wants to switch sides (Lam Ching-Ying), Pioneer III, the Real Maria and the Boss himself (Ben Lam). What surprises most about I LOVE MARIA is that the effects aren’t too bad. They’re nowhere near Hollywood standard, but they generally don’t look too cheesy and there’s no over-reliance on low shots of fragile-looking miniatures that you would have expected. It probably goes without saying, but Sally Yeh plays both the human Maria and the android version. She spends most of her time in the android form, and her costume and actions make her look like a cross between C3PO, Robocop and something from METROPOLIS. Tsui Hark, one of Hong Kong’s most respected directors, takes a co-starring role in this and shows his flair for comedy and makes a good partnership with John Shum, both looking as though they’re thoroughly enjoying themselves. Again, this sort of thing can only be found in Hong Kong – you couldn’t imagine Steven Speilburg appearing in Short Curcuit, could you? I’m slightly puzzled by Tony Leung Chiu-Wai (who incidentally looks almost unrecognisably young in this) - I’m still not sure why he was there, but he does kick-start the plot sometimes and provides yet more comic relief. Like so many films from this period, I LOVE MARIA is mainly played for laughs, and it’s hard not to find it likeable at least some of the time. The drama is dropped in sporadically and always feels a bit forced and a little hackneyed, but the fun factor never dips too low and the sight of Sally Yeh encased in metal will always be enough entertainment for some people. I’ve always loved the title of this film: it’s one of the rare instances where the theme or nature of the piece isn’t given away by the title. It sounds like a romance or at least a cheerful and bright bit of rom-com fluff. But a film about bloody big robots? That’s class. Reviewer Score: 7

Reviewed by: JohnR Date: 03/24/2007 Summary: Fun Film A Hong Kong/Tokyo hybrid. I say Tokyo because there's a social theme that runs beneath this "monster" movie (the head of the evil Hero Gang sees robots as superior to humans, builds stronger and stronger robots, including one to take the place of his girl friend (Sally Yeh), and even begins to turn himself into a robot). Our boys John Shum, Tsui Hark, and Tony Leung show him that even bumbling idiot humans will prevail. But that's where the similarity ends, because the bulk of the movie is pure Hong Kong crazy energy. (By the way, who of us wouldn't be tempted to make a robot version of his girlfriend in order that her looks never fade if those looks were Sally Yeh's?) Lot's of good comedy from John Shum and Tsui Hark; I agree with the other reviewers, Tsui Hark should do more comedy roles. An unbelievably young Tony Leung doing a spot on Jackie Chan impersonation (minus the physical moves). If I were making a collection of classic Hong Kong action/comedies, I would include this one. It wouldn't be at the top of the list, but certainly deserves a place. I'll give one example from the movie that of something that would never show up in a Hollywood movie: the way Sally Yeh's character as the bad guy's moll heroically follows her man down. Hollywood doesn't like the bad guys to have any positive characteristics; Hong Kong recognizes characters' humanity, even when they're essentially bad people. Reviewer Score: 6

Reviewed by: dandan Date: 03/08/2006 Summary: silly android fun... yep, i'm really on a silly hong kong movie buzz at the moment and this didn't let me down. it has a major role for tsui hark - which is a good thing - tony leung in a goofy supporting role - another good thing - and it has suprisingly good special effects too! a member of the special police weapons unit and a gangster who's left the 'hero gang' (ironically, they're the baddies) team up to prove their innocence after a large robot robs a hong kong bank. a newer robot is then dispatched by the hero gang to dispatch them; luckily, it malfunctions and joins them in their fight against the hero gang. all in all, it was pretty solid entertaining stuff with some hearty laughs and some good robot action. there's even a small part for lam ching ying.

Reviewed by: leh Date: 12/09/1999 A bit like a hi-tech Chinese Ghost Story, with some Robocop mixedin. A lot of fun, and a good example of why Tsui Hark should do more acting - he's a great comedian!

Reviewed by: hokazak Date: 12/09/1999 A twist on the Robocop story has the bad guys creating a giant evil robot, and then a more human-sized prototype with the face of Sally Yeh (who plays the main bad guy's girlfriend, and partner in crime). Fortunately, some whacky, comedy-relief inventors (John Sham and Tsui Hark - yeah, *that* Tsui Hark!) get a hold of the evil robot Maria and reprogram her to be a force for good. A bumbling, nebbish of a reporter (played by Tony Leung Chiu Wai) makes friends with Sham and Hark and sort of falls in love with the Maria robot. In the final showdown, the good guys and the girl robot take on the bad guys (including the original, human "Maria"/Sally Yeh) and the bad robot. Fun, humorous, and with good special effects. Sally Yeh is great - a much less retiring role than her blind damsel in distress character in John Woo's "The Killer".

Reviewed by: spinali Date: 12/08/1999 Summary: NULL The Hero Gang has assembled a trio of robots to terrorize HK (stealing money seems to be an afterthought), but a brainy research cop and a Gang defector (big-time movie directors John Sham and Tsui Hark) reprogram the pretty robot "Maria" (Sally Yip, in a dual role) to fight the bad guys and save their own skins. The plot may not be a work of art, but the robots are, and there are some okay jokes to help you through the weak spots. (2.5/4) [Reviewed by Steve Spinali] Reviewer Score: 6

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