Treasure Hunt: Quick Takes

Treasure Hunt marked Chow Yun-Fat's return to Hong Kong movie screens after a 2 year break (was probably needed after the intense shooting of Hard Boiled), this time directed by prolific Jeff Lau (Chinese Odyssey 1 & 2, Haunted Cop Shop). Being true to the Hong Kong cinema way of doing things, Treasure Hunt gives us gunplay, martial arts, comedy, romance, resulting in something very typical of Jeff Lau; an uneven but still strangely charming and enjoyable little film. The plot about Chow's CIA character and his mission to bring back a Chinese Treasure, a young woman with supernatural powers, played by the beautiful Wu Chien-Lien (The Phantom Lover) doesn't interest much but instead the core of the film, Chow and Wu Chien-Lien's romance carry us nicely through this 100 minutes. The two display supersolid chemistry and I just wish there was at least 20 minutes more of them together on screen. Co-starring Gordon Lau and Phillip Kwok.