Review: From the first instant I popped in this movie, I could tell it was going to be a unique Chow flick, seperated at least somewhat from his other constantly slapstick works. What the viewer ends up getting is an amazingly well made blend of side-splitting comedy spliced in with some believable drama that doesn't feel forced into the movie. I remember reading some jabroni's review of this, in which the author dubbed King of Comedy as "Stephen Chow's Truman Show". Bah. That's too easy. Where Jim Carrey failed to remain funny while being dramatic, Stephen Chow manages to switch the style up enough throughout the duration to hold your undivided attention.

The most phenomenal feature of this film is the way the characters relate to eachother, and how their personalities contrast and reflect one another's. Chow is charismatic and extremely likable. He doesn't play the typical hothead/ bigshot that he's so damn good at portraying. Instead, I'd most closely liken his character to his role in the soon-to-be Kung Fu Soccer (makes ya cring, eh?). He strives and strives to become a great extra, hoping that it will lead to a lucrative acting career, only to get spit on time and time again. I was amazed at the fact that I was extremely sympathetic to his plight after only the first few scenes. Of course, you still get to see him fall down and act retarded from time to time, and the blend is flawless.

Karen Mok, apparently taking a break from playing the "ugly chick", acts as a goal in a way to Chow's character. She is a superstar, living the dream that Chow longs to achieve, and as they begin to interact, she forms an odd attraction to him. It seemed that Stephen Chow acted as a magnet for almost every character in the film. It's like, no matter how much any particular person seemed to despise his clumsiness (especially Ng Man Tat's character, who expressed intense loathing of Chow for most of the film) they all become drawn to him in one way or another.

On the opposite end of Karen Mok's high profile character, is the ridiculously likable Cecilia Cheung. Employed at a seedy bar and decked out in a schoolgirl uniform, she exudes innocence and experience at the same time. She turns to Chow for acting lessons in order to become more believable for her "customers". Through the course of the film, she unknowingly seems to become dependent on Chow, and when him and Karen Mok get involved, the triangle relationship gets played out nicely.

Add to all this a great assortment of side characters with their own stories and unique quirks, and you have a volatile comedy mixture. The most standout hilarious character has to be the young wanna-be Triad gang. These kids are skinny as rails, and couldn't hurt a fly. But their leader is insanely gung-ho about his "gang", and his attempt at having a tough-ass accent is funny as hell. His side-kick is way too much of a hopeless nerd to scare anyone, so they have Chow teach him how to act tough. Of course, if you've seen this, you know it all leads to the "wang-flicking" scene. I won't go any further on that, you'll have to watch it.