Tiramisu (2002)

Director: Dante Lam

Writer: Man Yau Chan

Producer: Daniel Lam, Dante Lam

Cast: Nicholas Tse, Karena Lam, Eason Chan, Candy Lo, Vincent Kok

Running Time: 111 min.

Plot: See review below.

Availability: This title is available at HKflix.com

RAGING GAIJIN'S REVIEW: From the director of "The Twins Effect" and "Beast Cops" comes a supernatural romance starring Nicholas Tse! Yeah, I can't imagine "Tiramisu" is high up on the "must see" list for many Asian films fans but, what can I say, I'm a glutton for punishment. And, uh, I actually kind of like Nicholas Tse. Okay, I probably just ruined whatever credibility I had as a reviewer, but Hong Kong's resident 'bad boy' has got style and attitude to spare, as seen in cool flicks like "Gen-X Cops" and "My Schoolmate, the Barbarian". That said, "Tiramisu" is not exactly his best role. In fact, it's a movie that should be avoided, even if you're a fan of Nic like me. That's basically all you need to know. But if you're still curious (or a fellow glutton for punishment), then read on.

At its best, "Tiramisu" is a melancholy and romantic reflection on love and loss, sort of like a commercialized Wong Kar-Wai-lite. At its worst, it comes across as a mix between "Staying Alive" and "Ghost". Yeah...it gets that bad. Dante Lam can't seem to decide whether he wants the film to be an arthouse rumination on relationships or a sugary-sweet vehicle for his pop star leading man. As a result, the movie suffers.

See, Nicholas Tse is a young man living in Hong Kong who became deaf after a traumatic incident in his past. He works as a mailman and tries to live a fairly normal life. Early scenes featuring his character going about his daily routine are some of the best. There's a moment where Tse delivers a letter and then notices a child prodigy sitting at a piano, playing for a circle of admirers. Tse joins them and watches the performance, even though he can't hear it. When the others begin clapping, he claps as well and gives a sad and reflective smile. It's a moment that actually achieves a level of poignancy. The film is about someone with a disability, but the filmmakers never treat him as less (or more) than a normal person.

Nicholas later delivers mail to a ballet academy and notices a girl he's seen on the street, a girl he is quite taken with. They meet again on a crowded subway and sparks seem to fly as they are momentarily squashed together (director Dante Lam makes these few seconds last forever with slow motion and dramatic Cantopop, of course). It seems like "Tiramisu" is going to be a movie about how love can arrive at any moment and pull two disparate strangers together, no matter the odds. But then, perhaps not surprisingly, Dante Lam goes and screws everything up.

The girl dies. She's struck by a bus and killed but her spirit can't depart for the next world because her ballet troupe has a big competition coming up that she just can't miss. So what does she do? She possesses Nicholas Tse, inhabiting his body until he can perform for her in the big dance-off. Her presence ends up restoring his hearing and ends whatever made the film unique or interesting before. The rest is a tired retread of "Ghost" with a few ballet numbers thrown in, including a homoerotic dance 'battle' between Nic and another guy.

"Tiramisu" starts out interesting enough, like a watered down "Chunking Express", but shoots itself in the foot with inane supernatural happenings, excessive ballet numbers, and syrupy sentimentalizing. There was potential to make an interesting movie about love and personal connections, and the life of a deaf person in modern Hong Kong, but that's all pretty much out of the picture after twenty minutes.

But, uh, I'm still giving it an extra half point because...because I like Nicolas Tse. There, I said it. So sue me. I'm going to go watch "Gen-X Cops" again...

RAGING GAIJIN'S RATING: 5.5/10