Film Name: 临时劫案 / Rob N Roll
Perhaps because of the sporadic positive reviews I saw a few days ago, I went to see Rob N Roll, which I hadn’t planned to see……. As a result, I was cheated.
In fact, I did not have high expectations for this film before I saw it, just thinking that it would be a little easier to fool around for a while, but the film was ‘off the charts’ and did not achieve the desired effect in terms of entertainment and depth of play, so it would be a lie to say that it was not disappointing.
From some of the promotional material I’ve posted before, I could have easily assumed that Rob N Roll was a comedy about a wacky tough guy teaming up with two wimpy, dumb thieves to pull off a heist (as I’m sure a lot of people would have thought), but the film was a bit more different than I expected, and he’s actually a mash-up with a Gallic twist.
There’s certainly nothing wrong with being unexpected, as long as the film is made to look good, it’s a pleasant surprise.
Unfortunately, Rob N Roll doesn’t have that quality; plot-wise, it’s clearly meant to go for the oddly coincidental, interlocking, slightly complicated but not brain-burning approach, but just because there’s an idea, action, and endeavour doesn’t mean it’s going to be a good one.
The film’s multi-stranded narrative is too dry, the lack of chemistry, not to mention the compilation of the halfway point also shows signs of ‘can not be compiled can only be forced to turn hard’, the most typical is the car dealership of the two guys moonlighting as a swimming pool thief, look at this section is no problem, but the linkage between the previous and subsequent story points and the logic of the story do not make sense, it is really a bit unable to hold, the audience similar coincidences more than one. If there are more coincidences like this, it will be hard for the audience to be convinced, let alone enjoy it.
Compared to the crotch-pulling and slightly awkward plot midway through, Rob N Roll’s characterisation is slightly better, but very limited.
The biggest credit goes to the never-ending mid-life crisis – Lam’s taxi driver Goon and Simon Yam’s nursing home social worker Murong Fai are the film’s most flattering undertones: one is a miser who’s been tossed around by his family to the point of being out of temper, and who wants to screw his brother out of some money when he gets the chance, and the other is a kind-hearted man who’s too soft-hearted to do anything bad, and who can’t even do anything good. One is a miser who’s been tossed around by his family, and the other is a soft-spoken loser who can’t even think of a bad thing to do. They both share a trait that resonates with a wide range of people: being poor and having a short fuse, and having a bad time of it.
At the same time, the film also includes some Hong Kong characteristics, such as small houses, high property prices, and frequent unpaid bills, which are common to many people.
Including Aaron Kwok as Mui Lan Tin, also because of the lack of money is difficult to defeat, the loss of the love of the road on the wrong side of the poor …… Unfortunately, these quite black humour highlights, more by the persona / setting to speak out, from the real vivid and fuller there is still a greater distance.
Lastly, I’d like to comment on the film’s so-called ‘laughs’. Apart from the half-assed black humour mentioned above, all that’s left to laugh at in Rob N Roll is Aaron Kwok’s buck-toothed costume, thick accent, brief lines and comical body language – funny, more or less, but rather superficial. -Funny is more or less funny, but it’s also rather superficial and not much more than that.
The characters in the film, when confronted with a pistol or a banknote from Mui Lantian, will always say ‘thank you’, but I’m afraid that the audience outside the film will not be so nice.
Please specify：Yescase Store » Rob N Roll 2024 Film Review: I do not want to say ‘thank you.’