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The Magic Touch Year of release: 1992Genre: comedyDirector: Michael HuiProducer: Michael HuiStars: Michael Hui, Leon Lai, Ricky Hui, Winnie Lau, Philip Chan, Dayo WongRated II for language and drug referencesVersion reviewed: Ritek DVD |
Before Stephen Chow was the king of Hong Kong comedies, it was Michael Hui (along with his brothers Ricky and Sam) that created the first true modern Cantonese comedies with popular films such as Private Eyes and the Aces Go Places series. During the late 1980's, more scatalogical humor became the norm, and the Hui's more family-friendly humor fell by the wayside. But this comeback of sorts proved that the Hui family could still create a humorous movie that didn't depend on bodily functions, naked body parts or profanity to make a box office hit.
The story has Michael Hui playing a bogus psychic who is under investigation for tax fraud by a lazy agent (Leon Lai). After Michael gets hit on the head while saving a damsel in distress, he actually becomes able to read minds, but only while touching someone's hand. Leon sees an opportunity to impress his boss (Philip Chan) and get a promotion by taking down a drug dealer, using Michael's abilty to find out where the dealer is keeping his financial records.
While the plot is pretty thin, The Magic Touch keeps things moving fast enough so that the viewer doesn't dwell on any of the shortcomings of the story. I will admit that things became a bit confusing and convoluted in parts (mostly due to the English subtitles of a Mandarin dubbing of a Cantonese movie), but Michael Hui is so damn likeable, it's easy to forgive any shortcomings in the technical department. His stylings might not be as gut-busting as Stephen Chow's work, but the guy is truly one of the better on-screen comedians I've ever seen. Even Leon Lai -- one of the most generic actors in HK -- seems to actually gain a personality just by being next to Michael.
The Magic Touch isn't the most hilarious movie you're likely to see (especially for Western viewers who might not get a lot of the culture-specific jokes), but it is a finely crafted comedy. Some more ignorant or naive viewers out there might dismiss the proceedings here as "stupid". But for those who have already had a taste for HK comedies and can recognize the nuances Michael Hui brings to the art, The Magic Touch is definitely one of the more under-rated films out there, and is well worth a look.
RATING: 7
