|
Young, Pregnant and
Unmarried (1968)
Director:
Chor Yuen
Cast: Connie Chan,
Lui Kei, Helena Law
Publisher: Pearl City; Format: VCD,
DVD (Region 0, PAL)
English subtitles: No
Full credits and synopsis from the HKFA online catalog
A nice family with
two daughters and a father always on the verge of a heart
attack due to the troubles caused by his girls. Helped by
her younger sister (Connie Chan), the eldest (Fong Sam) spends
the night with her boyfriend. Later she finds herself pregnant and
panics. The younger sister, as courageous as she is carefree and
accustomed to being in trouble, decides to take the blame and
tells her father that she is the one who is pregnant. She clearly
has no clue about how a woman becomes pregnant yet is convinced
that her dear dad will understand and once again forgive her.
But in this outrageous lie, who will be
the chosen father? The girl decides it has to be the boy
next door (Lui Kei) who has long since tickled her fancy, so she
includes him in her surreal story, chock full of preposterous
details. This fellow, always seen in a positive light by the folks
in the neigborhood because he is rich and just graduated overseas,
suddenly finds himself treated poorly by everyone around him—and
he has no idea why, because no one dares tell what they’ve heard from
the poor, pregnant girl. Strong willed, he is determined to defend
himself, and donning many different (and funny) disguises, he starts
snooping around the country home where the girls have taken refuge
to give birth to the baby. In the meantime both families, while trying
to figure out what is going on, try also to become familiar with each
other, usually a good thing but resulting here in nothing but a chaotic
mess.
Directed by Chor Yuen, Connie Chan
is often adorable and—especially here—unstoppable and unbeatable.
Her role in this film turns her into a real troublemaker replete
with tons of jokes and funny gestures (she even picks her nose
and uses her boogers as mini cannon balls!). Her perfect onscreen
partner, Lui Kei is nonchalant as usual and brilliant in his many
disguises that let him demonstrate his special talent for cabaret-like
situations with perfect comic timing. The performances are the best
part of Young, Pregnant And Unmarried, while the story
and setting confirm that this film belongs to the “7-Day Wonders”
(films made quickly and with a low budget). A difficult theme like
pregnancy could have became something too heavy to handle, with a
risk of being too conservative or simply boring and moralistic. Luckily
Chor Yuen delivers instead a very light film, simply made but still
compelling and able to produce laughter and delight in the audience.
It is interesting to note the links
between the film’s stars and some of today’s actors. Young,
Pregnant And Unmarried was recently remade by Joe Ma as Dummy
Mommy, without a Baby (2001), and it’s obvious that Miriam
Yeung’s comedy style borrows generously from Connie Chan. (By the
way, director Chor Yuen has a small role in the film.) Another recent
movie, ’92 Legendary La Rose Noire (1992), an
open homage to Chor Yuen’s Black Rose (1965),
has a character played by Tony Leung Kar-fai who is not only called Lui
Kei, but also speaks and moves like Lui Kei. This makes one realize
there would be no film industry in Hong Kong today without the path
left by yesterday’s stars and directors. Some appreciate this precious
lineage, while others dislike the constant recycling of themes, cliches,
and typical characters. Well, this is just one more reason not to
miss Young, Pregnant And Unmarried, which besides
being a movie that sparkles because of Connie Chan and Lui Kei (and
also Helena Law Lan in a minor but funny role), is also one of the most
entertaining films from Hong Kong cinema.
Reviewed
by Valentina
Verrocchio |
|
Connie Chan takes the blame for her sister.
Stuffing hers mouth with pickles,
Connie pretends to be pregnant.
Lui Kei finds out that everyone thinks
he is the father.
Lui Kei is brilliant in his many disguises.
Connie Chan is unstoppable and unbeatable.
|
