Main Cast: Bradley Allan, Jackie Chan, Shu Qi, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai
Release Year: 1999
Country: HK
Run Time: 99 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
International action star Jackie Chan shifts gears in Bolei Cheun, in which martial arts are put on the back burner and romantic comedy is in the forefront. Bu (Shu Qi), the daughter of a pair of Taiwanese restaurant owners, one day finds a bottle floating near the docks with a message inside. The note reads, "Do you know I'm waiting for you?" and is signed "Albert," with an address in Hong Kong attached. Bu, convinced this is her destiny, flies to Hong Kong to meet the mysterious Albert, only to find he's a gay cosmetologist (Tony Leung Chiu-wai) who intended for the note to be found by his ex-boyfriend. But Albert is understanding and lets Bu stay at his apartment. Albert lets Bu tag along for a photo shoot he's working and she meets multi-millionaire C.N. Chan (Jackie Chan) when she helps him ward off a gang of toughs hired by L. W. Lo (Emil Chow), who became Chan's enemy in their schooldays and is still out to make his life miserable. Chan is single and a bit lonely, and quickly finds himself attracted to Bu. Bu discovers she likes Chan as well, but things become sticky when her boyfriend flies in from Taiwan to find out what she's done -- and Lo sends an American martial arts champion out to kidnap Chan's new love. While Bolei Cheun does feature a few sequences displaying Jackie Chan's unique fighting style and acrobatic dexterity, the emphasis is on the story and characters rather than the action, with Chan in a rare romantic lead, Leung cast against type and Shu Qi dominating most of the film's first act. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
Jackie Chan takes an unusual turn as a romantic lead in Gorgeous, a curious blend of Pretty Woman and The Karate Kid -- except that the kid, in this case, is Chan, in the Richard Gere role. It's a strange sight at first, to see Chan playing the cutthroat millionaire determined to drive his equally acquisitive competitor Lo (Emil Chow, with obligatory maniacal laughter). By the time Chan appears, though, the mood of the film has already been established by Shu Qi, who plays Bu, a romantic-minded girl from Taiwan who finds a message in a bottle, beseeching the recipient to come to Hong Kong. Tony Leung is hilariously campy as the gay cosmetologist (all of whose clothes appear to be either salmon or magenta) who sent the note, and who good-naturedly helps Bu set out to find the man of her dreams. Since that man is, of course, Chan, the hijinks that ensue involve a fair amount of hand-to-hand derring-do, leading to one of the odder meet-cutes in romantic comedy history: Chan jumps off a boat during an altercation and is rescued by Bu. Those who watch Jackie Chan movies chiefly for the action may find Gorgeous a bit slow and sentimental for their tastes, but Chan rises admirably to the occasion, and is altogether charming in the role. Qi, meanwhile, seems to consist of equal parts ethereal beauty and gleeful innocence, a winning combination. ~ Genevieve Williams, All Movie Guide
Chan had long wanted to be involved in drama films, but had constantly been dissuaded by Leonard Ho, one of the founders of Golden Harvest and Chan's godfather. Ho had argued that to ensure success in his films, Chan should play to his fanbase by only doing action movies and avoiding the love scenes that may alienate certain markets (notably Japan). Ho died on 16 February1998[1] and Chan left Golden Harvest soon after, seeking a change and a new freedom to make the films he really wanted to. This coincided with his growing fame in the West, due to the international success of the film Rush Hour.
Gorgeous was originally conceived purely as a love story, with Chan as producer, but not as one of the film's cast. In order to secure the actress Shu Qi, the script of the film was re-written and a role for Chan was created. This soon developed into a starring role, and elements of action crept in. However, Gorgeous remains primarily a romantic comedy and so it differs from his usual all-out action films. The action scenes are fewer and there is no real bad guy character - the fight with the nominal enemy (played by Brad Allan) is a pre-arranged bout and both fighters wear boxing gloves - competitive rather than motivated by revenge or the fight for survival.
The director had wanted to use Chan's office as the set for C.N.'s apartment, but this proved impractical, particularly as that section of the office is on the third floor. However, many props from Chan's office were used including his own training dummy. Chan said of his character C.N., that he was "60-70% Jackie Chan". The clothing the character wears, the training routine he undergoes and healthy lifestyle he maintains, his general good nature and his environmental role are all traits and actions of Chan himself.
Chan summarised the difference between the films Rush Hour and Gorgeous, stating the former was a job, and the latter was his baby. In Rush Hour his role was restricted to actor and action director. In Gorgeous, he was also the producer, editor and was involved in casting.[2]
Although a romantic comedy, the only significant kissing scene was dropped from the main film for fear that it would alienate certain East Asian markets who may not want to see Chan in such a relationship. The underwater kiss scene was retained and appeared amongst the out-takes that accompany the film's closing credits.
The film is notable for casting numerous, then, unknown actors who went on the achieve national and in some cases multi-national success. These include: Sam Lee, Daniel Wu, Richie Ren and Stephen Fung
Plot synopsis
Bu (Shu Qi) is a beautiful young girl from a small Taiwanese fishing village who discovers a romantic message in a bottle. She heads for Hong Kong to find its writer, only to learn that it was in fact written by Albert (Tony Leung Chiu Wai), a lonely gay man. She, however, meets the wealthy recycling company owner, C.N. (Jackie Chan) who falls in love with her; but the plot is soon thickened by rival businessmen, hired goons, and Bu's confused would-be boyfriend.
