Les Dieux du jeu

One of Wong Jing's better directorial efforts, GOD OF GAMBLERS sees man-of-the-moment Chow Yun Fat playing an ultra-slick gangster/gambler who has a kind of supernatural ability to win at gambling. His activities soon bring him into contact with small-time crook Andy Lau, and after a bout of amnesia he finds himself caught up in a completely unpredictable adventure.

GOD OF GAMBLERS is a bit of an odd movie, plot-wise. Part of it feels like a slick John Woo thriller, complete with a lengthy and violent shoot-out in a multi-storey car park which wouldn't be out of place in the likes of THE KILLER. The other part of it is a more traditional Hong Kong comedy, a bit like the Jackie/Sammo flick HEART OF THE DRAGON, with some low brow humour and lots of situational stuff mixed in.

I have to say that I found the amnesia sub-plot to be overlong; it dragged the pacing of the film down as a whole, so my favourite parts were the first and final thirds. Saying that, it's still a pretty good little movie, with strong acting from Yun Fat and Lau, who make a good tag-team. The best bits are inevitably the stylish gambling sequences, which are funny and exciting in equal measure, filled with neat twists and some wonderful card tricks. Given this film's success at the box office, numerous sequels followed.