It's difficult to see how Lavender has made itself different to any other 'angel from heaven' romantic comedy. Ok, we may add a little bit of 'Chocolat' in it with Kelly Chen playing an aromatherapist just to spice things up a bit, but ultimately, it follows an all too familiar script.
Kelly Chen plays Athena, an aromatherapist whose boyfriend died in training for the SWAT team. Takeshi Kaneshiro plays Angel, an angel (surprise!) who falls through the roof of her apartment after being caught in a storm. Injured and only being able to survive through being loved, he learns about the human world while he recovers. Throw in Chow Chow (played by Eason Chan), a gay ex- lover of Athena's ex-boyfriend, and you have yourself enough twists to make a tightly plaited rope.
Whilst most of the story follows the motorway, occasionally, there are a few witty moments, which are quite touching. You wouldn't say that Lavender was funny, though. Witty is probably just the word for it.
Kaneshiro does an excellent job of playing Angel, and from the few movies I have seen, he is quite a talented actor. Chen graces our screen, and given that she hasn't dabbled in acting much, I do think she's done well and is one to look out for. However, the lack of on-screen chemistry between the two is missing from the film, and that is a shame because overall, the film is fairly good.
