Andy Lau stars in Feng Xiaogang's crime story about
con-artist couple Bo (Lau), an expert thief from Hong Kong, and Li (Rene Liu),
a beautiful thief from Taiwan. They travel across China plying their crooked
trade until Li decides to break free from her criminal lifestyle. Which is when
she meets Dumbo (Wang Baoqiang), an unsuspecting hick returning home to find a
wife and get married. As luck would have it, he’s also carrying his life’s
savings with him.
So they board a train, along with an assortment of thieves
and wrong doers headed by Uncle Li (Ge You) and his gang of misfits. Trust
turns to mistrust, loyalty turns to deceit and Andy Lau’s hair goes from
unintentionally hilarious to shampoo commercial perfection in no time at all.
I’ve never been a big fan of Feng Xiaogang’s output, so I’m
probably not in the best position to review this 2004 commercial hit. The
Banquet didn’t do much for me, and the same can be said for If You Are The One, although I do have a soft spot for wartime epic Assembly. The word plodding
springs to mind, and though his talent behind the camera cannot be ignored,
somebody really needs to have a word with him about pacing. But then, maybe
it’s just me. Like I said, I’m probably not in the best position to review this
movie.
A World Without Thieves suffers from the same problem as the
films that came before it; at just under two hours long it sure takes its time
in getting from one station to the next. Not a lot actually happens, and the
set pieces (if you can call them that) are never truly convincing. Perhaps you
can blame the laughable use of CGI, or maybe it’s the fact that some of the
feats are, in reality, rather ludicrous. Whatever the reason may be, A World
Without Thieves lacks credibility where it needs it most, and for a film
about deception that’s really saying something.
Much of the film takes place on a train, which is fine in
theory, but it does become a little tiresome after a while. Not that we can
blame the train entirely. Performances are strong but some of the characters
suffer the same fate as the CGI trickery. Worst offender is Wang Baoqiang, not
only is his performance somewhat grating, the character of Dumbo is less believable
than Lau’s wig. He’s too naive, too innocent and just too trusting a fool to
immerse yourself in. His inability to act like a real person means that he’s
difficult to relate to.
The rest of the cast fare better, and there are some
imaginative moments to savour, but A World Without Thieves left me cold for the
most part. Lau fans will probably embrace the unusual flavour; he has a habit
of choosing quirky movies and themes, even if his choice of haircut defies
belief this time around. But then, we are talking about a world of thieves
here, where the sleight of hand can change everything. The sleight of hand and
a visit to the hairdressers, that is. It wasn’t my kind of movie but that’s not
to say it was a complete waste of time.
Fans of Feng Xiaogang and Andy Lau will certainly find
plenty to enjoy, and there are some fine performances waiting to be discovered
underneath the lumbering exterior, but for me A World Without Thieves was a
train journey that doesn’t require a return ticket. Occasionally stylish and
occasionally sluggish too, Andy Lau’s hairpiece has a lot to answer for. AW
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