Fantastic Fest 2009

Two minutes into CRAZY RACER, Geng Hao (Huang Bo, CRAZY STONE) wins the silver medal in the national cycling championships, earns a product endorsement contract from an energy drink manufacturer and is on top of the world. Two minutes later, when he finds that the energy drink he endorses has caused him to fail a post-race urine test, he is stripped of his title, banned from professional racing for life, loses his endorsement contract and his coach dies from a heart attack. Lots of plot for four minutes, and the pace doesn’t slow until the credits begin to roll. All he wants now is to extort enough money from the unscrupulous businessman who caused his demise to pay for a proper funeral for his coach. His quest turns into an obsession that leads him into a seemingly inextricable web of lies, deception, murder, crime and intrigue. Every step forward for our seemingly cursed hero has an accompanying 10 steps back.

It’s hard to describe the intricate intertwining tendrils of this story as each subplot sprouts new branches and continually intertwine, drawing in more and more outlandish oddball characters who all come together for the final knuckle-biting finale. Singing and dancing Chinese Supermen, bumbling police investigators, even more bumbling apprentice criminals, double and triple-cross assassination attempts, muay thai gymnastics, triad gangster shootouts, explosions and car chases all collide to form a deliriously intoxicating celluloid cocktail. Aside from the over-the-top action and excitement, the film is grounded in superb performances by the cast of comedic actors. I know that I am only catching one out of every four jokes, as the comedy clearly is steeped in clever wordplay and double-meaning. Even still, the script bursts with laugh-out-loud moments and steers clear of the shameless mugging of many Hong Kong comedies.

Not since watching my first Stephen Chow film have I been more excited about a new talent coming out of China, and this time it’s not even coming out of the production powerhouse of Hong Kong. That’s right, Ning Hao is making his movies in mainland China, and he is giving Hong Kong a serious run for the money. Crazy Racer is seriously one of the most entertaining, funniest madcap adventures I have seen in a long time. (Tim League)