| A big flop upon release in 1995, which is perhaps why comedy legend Michael Hui didn't appear in a Hong Kong production again until 2004 (although he did have a supporting role against Gong Li and Jeremy Irons in Wayne Wang's The Chinese Box). Hui plays business efficient Mainlander Fuk-Ching who goes into the hotel business, prompted by a shady Western businessman (Gregory Charles River - Her Fatal Ways IV). However giving each and everyone he knows something to do at the hotel proves to be his quick downfall. Fuk-Ching takes a second trip to Hong Kong in order to really learn how to run his business. He does so by working amongst the low-end workers of a hotel managed by Vivi (Alice Lau).
Quite wildly local and over the top with its satire, the intentions seems to stagger with Clifton Ko at the helm but when basically going physical on us, the exaggerated gags of Fuk-Ching's hotel falling apart and his way of acquiring knowledge when working for Vivi plays more favourably and Hui scores a gem or two here. It's merely amusing and a far cry from his best work but Funny Business eventually pays off decently thanks to likeable turns by Hui and Lau. James Wong, Lo Jun-Ho, Law Kar-Ying, Cheung Tat-Ming (who also wrote the script), Teddy Yip and Rachel Lee (as herself) also appear. |
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