Second-tier Hong Kong director who has made plenty of films in the shadow of bigger names, but worked up a surprisingly solid oeuvre nonetheless. If you're looking to dig deeper into Hong Kong's commercial output, Yip's work is a good place to start.
Movies
Wai Man Yip succeeds in creating something that feels very fresh and unique, looks great and leaves something mysterious behind.
Warlords is an awesome film about three beardy men with balls taking their little army to conquer nations, but failing to keep in control over their own friendship.
A Chinese horror story based on a purportedly real-world haunted house. The film became quite the success in Mainland China, so much in fact that the owners of the property had to guard the house because it attracted tourists from all over the place. And sure enough, Raymond Yip delivered a very capable horror film. Xu Ruoqing, a writer, moves into her ancestral house together with her husband. It's a beautiful French Baroque-style mansion, but it houses a dark history. It doesn't take long before ghostly apparitions haunt the family, but Xu's husband is so busy trying to save his business that he pays no heed to his wife's suspicions. The film isn't terribly original or scary, but the lush cinematography and beautiful imagery kept me captivated from start to finish. Performances are good, the score is capable and though predictable, the plot is solid. It's a polished and capable horror film, prime filler if you're thirsty for a good haunted house flick.Read all
Portland Street Blues
Iceman: The Time Traveller
Decent sequel to Law's Iceman. Donnie Yen reprises his role while this follow-up turns things upside down, warping the Ming warriors back to their own time in order to alter history. Some decent action scenes, some doubty CG, no time to get bored. It's not a bad film, but Wai Main Yip can do a lot better.
Those Were the Days...
Sixty Million Dollar Man
Zany Hong Kong comedy. Not too surprising with Jing Wong and Stephen Chow joining forces. Wong is one of Hong Kong's weirdest commercial directors, Chow the undisputed king of comedy. Sixty Million Dollar Man may not be masterpiece material, it's still a highly enjoyable film. The plot it completely nonsensical. It revolves around Sing, a wealthy jerk who wastes his time making fun of others. His luck runs out when he dates the wife of a Yakuza boss, who leaves him for dead. Sing is saved by a wacky professor, who gives him the power to transform into pretty much everything he wants to. If that isn't the perfect premise for a little goofy comedy, I don't know what is. Chow does very well, there are plenty of visual jokes (seeing Chow as a tube of toothpaste can only be described as memorable) and the slick pacing makes sure there's not a dull moment in sight. It's a shame the direction is a little cheap, otherwise this could've been a real classic.Read all
A film that looks delightfully wacky on paper, but is in fact pretty simple, basic genre entertainment. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but the film is a bit too glossy and forgettable to leave a strong impression. Of course, Lau is one of those directors who learned the trade while making films, so consider this a simple exercise for better films to come. Three womanizers return home defeated. While taking the bus, they are kidnapped and brought to hell for their sins. Sadly, hell is quite full and there is.o place for them, so they are sent back to Earth. Only this time they have to go through life as women, and they'll be subjected to the same nasty tricks they've been pulling for years. Only by finding true love will their curse be reverted. It's a rather messy film that constantly switches between tone and genre. Lau is pretty good at that, but it does make it hard to care much about any of it. Ekin Cheng isn't the best man to lead a comedy like this, the rest of the cast isn't strong enough to cover for him. It's still decent genre fluff, but not a very notable film in Lau's oeuvre.Read all
Anna in Kung-Fu Land
Here we find Jing Wong joining forces with Wai-Man Yip to deliver a run-of-the-mill romcom slash Aladdin rip-off. The film screams quick filler and that's exactly what you're getting here. Even then there are some funny bits that betray Wong's talent, though I'm not sure if it's worth the trouble for most. Ko doesn't have the easiest life, but she gets a lucky break when she finds a magic pearl. The pearl has a genie inside, who grants Ko three wishes. If the story sounds slightly familiar it's because Wong doesn't even try to hide his inspiration, but at least it's a decent enough premise for some HK romance. The performances aren't terrible and Jing Wong cracks a couple of nice jokes at his own expense, other than that this film is pretty bland. The cinematography is cheap and unpolished, there are too many gags that don't land and it's so forgettable that you'll have forgotten all about it by the next day. Simple filler.Read all
