Unfortunately, Lee Chi-Ngai fumbles where he has succeeded in the past. "Lost and Found" is a Hong Kong classic that could have, SHOULD have been. I know that HK fans like to joke about Michael Wong and say that he ruins whatever movie he's in, but it has never been more accurate than in "Lost and Found". While he is admittedly wooden and flat in just about everything, Wong usually only plays a supporting role so his presence doesn't sink or swim the movies he's in. But for some reason, Lee Chi-Ngai decides to lavish Wong with screen time in "Lost and Found". He seems to be in the film more than Takeshi Kaneshiro, even though Takeshi receives top billing. Why you would sideline a talented and charismatic (not to mention international) star like Takeshi for a no-talent wannabe like Wong is beyond me. It goes without saying that this proves to be the film's downfall.

The story concerns Kelly Chan's character, who has just been diagnosed with leukemia... and has only a 30% chance of survival. Soon thereafter she meets a Scottish sailor played by Michael Wong. There is an instant attraction but Chan is afraid of commitment and keeps him at a distance. Before she knows it, Wong has vanished without a trace on a sea voyage. Fortunately for her she runs into a character named That Worm AKA Mr. Lost and Found, played by Takeshi Kaneshiro. It's his specialty, and profession, to find anything that is lost. From wallets to missing family members, you name it and he'll track it down for a price. Chan hires Takeshi to find Wong but their search draws her closer to Takeshi than she could have imagined.

First, the good parts: Takeshi Kaneshiro nails his role completely. Much like the loveable and aloof individuals he played in "Chunking Express" and "Fallen Angels", Mr. Lost and Found is one of the most endearing characters in the history of Hong Kong cinema. He's a compassionate and tenacious young man who involves himself in the affairs of others so that he doesn't have to confront the loneliness of his own life. The poignant quality of the character is driven home by Takeshi's natural screen presence and charm.

But Takeshi's memorable role is also what makes the film so frustrating... because he's simply not in it enough! For reasons beyond me, "Lost and Found" spends a good 40-50 minutes of its running time focusing on Kelly Chan and Michael Wong's relationship. It's maddening that Lee Chi-Ngai has Takeshi Kaneshiro in one of his finest roles but instead chooses to focus on Michael Wong. I don't know what he was thinking, perhaps there was a scheduling conflict, but it completely ruins the movie. And while Kelly Chan is a decent actress, she just doesn't have what it takes to playa the dramatic role of a fatally-ill woman.

To give you some perspective on the film: in the first ten minutes, we're introduced to Kelly Chan and Takeshi Kaneshiro, as well as Takeshi's job. Chan explains her case to Takeshi, which involves a thirty minute flashback to her first meeting with Wong. Once that is *finally* over with, we get to the heart of the film, in which Takeshi and Chan bond while trying to find Wong. They also later get involved in the case of a young girl whose mother is deathly ill. This segment, about fifty minutes, is easily the best part of the movie. It's genuinely tragic and moving without ever becoming sappy. The film never resorts to maudlin emotions or heavy-handed themes. It's low-key but effective and Takeshi Kaneshiro is the resounding heart of the film. But then Lee Chi-Ngai ruins it once again by including *another* 15-20 minute segment where Takeshi is forgotten in favor of Wong!

You can tell that there's a great movie buried somewhere in "Lost and Found" but it never gets the chance to reach the surface. Every time it starts to get good, Michael Wong pops up and starts annoyingly switching back and forth between speaking Cantonese and English. And in a scene that is clearly a disgrace to Scottish people everywhere, Wong wears a kilt and plays the bag-pipes! I sincerely wish Lee Chi-Ngai had done some last minute changes in the editing room, perhaps cutting at least 20 minutes of Wong and adding more of Takeshi. As it is, "Lost and Found" is a flawed masterpiece.

It's really a shame. Takeshi Kaneshiro as Mr. Lost and Found is one of the most humane and poignant characters to ever appear in a HK movie. He speaks to the profound need for hope that is in all of us; the need to believe that no matter how lost something may be there is always a chance to recover it. I wish that Mr. Lost and Found could have starred in a film worthy of his character but, alas, it is not to be. I'm giving the film a neutral score of 5.5; round up if you're a fan of Takeshi Kaneshiro.

Lee Chi-Ngai have been lurking in the background, writing for a few Peter Chan directed projects and occasionally directing himself at UFO productions (which this also is) with moderate success critically. Yet he's one of those filmmakers no one really discovers unless they're fans of a particular actor or actress, in this case Takeshi Kaneshiro or Kelly Chen. Writer/producer/director Lee chooses to add another movie to a genre some call 'terminal beauty' (i.e. it features a dying character, preferably a woman). Good thing is that among the movies out of that 'genre' that I've seen (such as C'est La Vie, Mon Cheri), all have been of high quality. Lost And Found is no different despite having one of Hong Kong cinemas lesser talents in it.

These type of dramas doesn't have a lot of room for originality because the themes and the outcomes remain similar between the films. When you can't bring something new to the table then the writer, in this case also the director, have to put huge strength in the presentation of themes in order to achieve something regarded as meaningful. That must've been Lee Chi Ngai's mantra and he's created a, actually, life-affirming film. He presents a content that he could've steered in any direction emotionally. What he does is to focus on the positive aspects of trying and that is the crucial theme, primarily seen in Kelly and Takeshi's characters.

By choosing positivity, Lost And Found becomes subdued and almost mellow, which I didn't expect. To go the highly emotional route has it's place in drama cinema but it's more challenging to lessen that tone and making the audience focusing on connecting with your characters. To see them in tears can be an easier way to bring out the sympathy but I enjoy the kind of writing that spends time with people and slowly reveals their respective arcs, right up till the end. Director Lee Chi Ngai does just that and step by step his film grows into something beautiful. Even unexpected is a word that can be applied, especially when it comes to the choices characters make.

Looking for a moment at the character of Lam, played by Kelly Chen, that isn't nursed back to health by That Worm but discovers that being hopeful isn't naive in today's world (or the world of 1996). She profiles him as a loner with only his Lost And Found company to rely on. What she doesn't realize is that there lies much worth in putting in huge effort to give back hope to those who have lost. That Worm talks about that it doesn't matter the worth of what's lost, it can affect greatly anyway. If that asset seems rare, it's because it is. What better way to try and promote that than through moving images. Her meeting with Worm is all because what happens prior, seen in a flashback, namely the meeting with Ted. He's played by Hong Kong cinemas most bland actor. The one, the only Michael Wong. The credibility of the movie hinges quite a bit on the relationship between Lam and Ted and during my viewing I questioned the reason for her attraction, or rather the lack of explanation for it, to Ted. One theory of Lee Chi Ngai's probably is that she, without being able to explain, sees someone who can make her life magic again (watch out for the visions she has of him performing circus tricks. One of the odder sequences of the film) and that does work when looking at Kelly's acting. The problem that I have lies with Michael Wong and in his hands, the character isn't brought to the screen as much as the script demands. That he freely flip flops between Cantonese and English makes sense for the character and that there's not even a hint of Scottish accent in him I can live with. Bland acting, I can not and even if Michael displays moments of sincerity in his performance, Lost And Found has its weakness in him. It's adequately written but not performed. In the end, when Lee's message has come through, it's not a performance that will bring the movie down. It has far too many strengths that outpowers the weaknesses.

A device used frequently in the movie is the voice-over by Kelly Chen's character. The usage of it is somewhat of a miscalculation on director Lee's behalf. It's just too much of it employed throughout. In certain scenes she's almost offering running commentary and in others the unsaid would've worked just as well. It's a welcome element though and Kelly's soothing voice transforms other scenes into wonderful cinema.

Bill Wong (Rouge) is Lee Chi Ngai's director of photography and his cinematography goes hand in hand with the mellow atmosphere of the film. The opening black & white sequence nicely captures the different vibes Hong Kong radiates, both the tempting but also the dirty type. In other words, a city that undoubtedly has much in it and I think Lee's intentions was to capture the real world where people are lost, found and loved in. Later where we follow Kelly and Takeshi around the moist, tight urban Hong Kong, it's clear that a natural look was planned out for Lost And Found. The straightforward camera language, with hints of a documentary style in between, uses the city basically, whether bright or in darkness. As much light as needed is rigged up but it looks like Bill emphasized the use of natural lighting more, something I connect to more when studying the look of a film. Part of the movie takes place on location in Scotland and combining traditional Scottish music and the beautiful highlands makes for some stunning imagery in that section of the film. Also creating suitable mood throughout is the use of the Leonard Cohen song 'Dance Me To The End Of Love'.

Kelly Chen divides her time between a singing career and movies (like many 'stars' in Hong Kong nowadays). I don't see her developing character acting skills to an extremely high degree in the next few years but she has provided fine turns in Lavender for instance. She portrays Lam as a bit judgmental and arrogant but she is one that has to try and face life again, that hurdle can bring out the worst side of you. It's quite a journey Lam takes and Kelly effectively brings the audience with her through her performance. I've seen Kelly act alongside Takeshi Kaneshiro three times now, each time in dramas and each time they've displayed very nice on-screen chemistry. Takeshi is a wonderfully expressive actor and especially good at talking to the audience with his face, not just his eyes. That Worm is not a man who is easily robbed off his enthusiasm and even confronted with negative remarks makes his upbeat self a defensive tool. The latter produces the naivety Lam remarks upon though. Despite that, he is a character filled with love for people and his Lost And Found company is the manifestation of that. Jordan Chan appears in a touching cameo as well as Cheung Tat Ming and Maria Cordero.

This particular genre hasn't exhausted itself and those trying it on seems to be putting in genuine effort. C'est La Vie, Mon Cheri may be the best example but Lost And Found can proudly stand next to Derek Yee's film.

Exhausted, she hires " That Worm ", a weird man from Mongolia (Takeshi Kaneshiro). He's the owner of a little investigation company specialized in hunting for disappeared things and wanted people. He hires deprived persons and even helps money-less people. Kelly calls to him for help to meet again the sailor she let go away and to recover...hope.

How nice to watch Takeshi Kaneshiro playing opposite Kelly Chan in this realistic and dramatic comedy !

Kelly Chan Wai-Lam, a great Hong Kong Pop star, plays honorably a young woman suffering from a lethal disease. And, it's nice to watch Takeshi Kaneshiro in a pretty serious acting, after his adventures with Mister Wong Kar-Wai. The goal of the movie is to spend the remaining time as well as possible, helping poor people from time to time, knowing that we are all going to die sooner or later. Unfortunately, Kelly didn't expected it so early.

Rarely in a HK movie, such feelings were so intense, and with a credible plot. It won't be too much saying that the emotional power emerging from this film is rather close to the one from Chungking Express (obviously, less dramatic).

A simple, clear and efficient way to direct actors makes us easily feel the characters and makes us understand their desires and their motivations. May be to appreciate it, you've got to be " Kelly Chan W-L addicted " or to fall for her smile...

The part of the film shot in Scotland, in " The Edge Of The World ", deals with an initiatory trip for Kelly, in the ultimate stage of the disease. It advocates a return to nature (and beautiful landscapes), not really to cure but actually to soothe.

No death scene is shown. It makes the loss of the likable character of Kelly more powerful and more painful. During her burial and the funeral ceremony, Kelly is still there, like a spectre, around her friends and her family, who are not able to see her. She realizes the sort of thing she didn't understand in The Edge Of The World: that everyone loved her. Finally, she let to her husband -That Worm- a part of herself, a baby.

Since the beginning of its showing, that movie was run down by critics, because of its obvious references to the 97' Retrocession, and to the HK inhabitants departure abroad, anticipating the change of political regime. However, this superficial and partial view of things is to oppose with the deep introspection of the main character, and with her example for struggle against unavoidable things of life and for her devotion to others and for ultimate hope.

The story then follows Ah Chung and Lam in their journey to examine the heavy issues of life and death through small misery, small suffering, small joy and small miracles they encounter. All these episodes are handled with extraordinary tenderness, freshness, subtlety, realism, and zen. They are the best parts of the movie. For example, a desperate husband (played in a couple of scenes with incredible realism by Jordan Chan) looking for his wife who deserted him and the kids is lied to by Ah Chung to keep his hope alive. A child wishes for a rose garden for her terminally ill mother. Lam and Ah Ching try to pull a miracle to make the garden bloom. The movie is full of wonderful touches that makes the point without being too preachy or artificial. Ah Chung's assistant is a disabled poor neighbor (CHeung Tat-Ming). His secretary is a disfigured girl who cannot walk. Her mother (Maria Cordello), who we first see constantly scolding her, turns out to be a loving mother that carries her to work every day.

Although the overall tone is more melancholy than the Derek Yee movie "C'est la vie, Mon cherie" of similar topic and similar passion of the local setting, "Lost and Found" is full of humors and bitter-sweet moments that bring smile and tears simultaneously to the viewer's face. The stubbornly realistic and understated style of the director Lee Chi-Ngai (who also wrote and directed the similarly bitter-sweet-funny "Dr. Mack") works very effectively thanks to the down-to-the-earth performances from the supporting cast. The delicate balance between philosophical reflection and unpredictable reality, hope and despair, realism and romanticism, is very well handled through most of the film.

The last part of the movie takes Lam to the lofty highland of Scotland, and somehow connects the two places (HK and Scotland) that couldn't be less alike. A surprising decision that works quite well in making the theme universal.

Takeshi Kenashiro gave an excellent and refreshing performance as Ah Chung (meaning "worm"). Michael Wong is competent, although a little forgettable, as the Scottish sailor without a Scottish accent. Unfortunately, Kelly Chen's good look cannot save her from poor acting. Her voice-over is effectively understated, but the performance is too wooden to build her character. The writing is also at its weakest in making her character convincing and likable. It is not enough to persuade the audience to like her just because she has leukemia. The whole terminal disease ploy is a bit too traditional and melodramatic that it doesn't work very well with the subtlety and realism of the rest of the story.

Finally, I was disappointed by the ending of "Lost and Found." An open ending would work much better to complete the discussion about hope and fate. Like one of Ah Ching's lines: "I only have 10 to 20% chance of finding something, but if you don't go out and look for it, then you have no chance at all."

In the end, the true theme of this movie is its love for Hong Kong, its people, and their spirits.