Sha shou de tong hua (1994) User Reviews

Little known but highly rewarding

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 19 April 2020]

A TASTE OF KILLING AND ROMANCE is a little-known but highly enjoyable action flick from 1994, starring the one and only Andy Lau who teams up with Miss Hong Kong 1990 herself, Anita Yuen. The story is about two opposing assassins who end up falling for each other, putting them in peril, and it manages to create freshness from otherwise highly familiar material. One of the film's key strengths is the direction from the unknown Veronica Chan, and I was disappointed to read that this was her sole feature.

The film's cinematography is excellent throughout, and even the dialogue scenes are shot in interesting and quirky ways. The action is frequent and the various shoot-outs, chases and murder are handled in a bombastic fashion, with touches of John Woo and even TERMINATOR 2 about them (a key bit of music from the latter is borrowed in this film's later stages). Lau is effortlessly likeable, but he has his thunder stolen by the excellent Yuen, giving one of those fine sad and tragic performances that mark a true femme fatale, Waise Lee as the dedicated cop on his tail, and Mark Cheung, who truly is a despicable villain here (the scene in the apartment with the granny, the kid and the dog is unforgettable!). It's not quite a top tier film, but for a mid budget production at best I found it thoroughly entertaining.

Stylish & Confused, Yet Still Entertains!!

[Movie-Misfit · 6/10 · 3 May 2020]

Veronica Chan's one and only film as a director, is one that seems to split fans of the genre as to whether it is worthy of a watch as a Hong Kong action thriller, or one to be passed. For me, A Taste Of Killing And Romance gets a thumbs-up!

While it may not offer anything overly new in its storyline of one hired killer falling for another, the film covers its clichés and flaws with some great action scenes, and nice cinematography by Fan Chuen Lam. The action choreography is handled by the one-and-only Stephen Tung Wei, who offers plenty of nice shoot-outs and stunt work that come often enough throughout the film. The fantastic Bruce Law backs Wei up with some great vehicle and fire stunts also.

While Anita Yuen may seem miscast, she doesn't do a terrible job as a killer-for-hire, and has great on-screen chemistry with star Andy Lau as the likeable assassin. Both walk through life looking pretty and carefree, as if their jobs are non-existent, quickly falling in love before realising it may be time to look for new employers if they want to keep this going - which is obviously not going to be as easy as it sounds. I did find, however, that it was this flirty fun and light-hearted take on the relationship that seemed to hinder the characters in question, and shift the tone of the film somewhat.

The great Waise Lee plays the hardened cop, dedicated to bringing down Lau any way possible (so much so that it causes Andy to have a bizarre nightmare of his take-down), but it is third assassin, Mark Cheng, who steals the show as the violent opposition who takes no prisoners going so far as to smother a crippled granny with cling-film, choke a little girl with bleach, and stick a dog in a washing machine!

Although she is no Ringo Lam or John Woo, Veronica Chan offers a pretty decent film for her first and last time as director. A Taste Of Killing And Romance may not be the best of the bunch, and while flawed and void of anything spectacular, it still entertains...

Overall: Stylish, yet confused. Violent, yet romantic. A Taste Of Killing And Romance is worth the watch at least once for some great moments!

pretty bad Andy Lau vehicle

[ccow4140 · 5/10 · 9 February 2005]

ATOKAR was made pretty much just before Lau cracked the big time, and I'm pretty sure its one he would rather forget about. Feels very rushed with plot holes and a lazy story. Pretty standard HK action, not horrible but far from great. Oh, and Anita Yuen was so miscast as a pro killer, she looks and acts like a librarian more than a cold blooded killer for hire. Worth a viewing though. I don't know if it biased my opinion of it, but the English subs on the DVD i watched were incredibly shoddy, some of the worst i have had to endure. One other thing that struck me was the rating: MA15+. This movie has necrophilia (implied not shown), graphic violence, an old woman being killed with clingwrap, a young girl being forced to drink a bottle of antiseptic: these things just wouldn't get past the censors in the West, these scenes would be cut or the film given an R18+ at the least.

An Often Overlooked Andy Lau Gangster Flick

[rustyangel13 · 21 December 2002]

A TASTE OF KILLING AND ROMANCE: Here's yet another ANDY LAU action, gangster, hitman flick. I mean to tell ya, the man must really enjoy his "likable killer" roles so I guess all these movies aren't too terribly bad because they probably helped him define his character for his greatest role yet, in JOHNNIE TO's gangsta masteriece, FULLTIME KILLER. But this time, it's not hot shot action lead, ANDY LAU that stands out in memory about this film, it's the main "bad guy", actor MARK CHENG. I mean, this guy is hardcore! If you're going to be a "bad guy" in a movie, then by all means, go all out, I say. And he most certainly does! He strangles old women in wheelchairs with plastic wrap. He murders little girls by dumping bleach down their throats. He chops off the fingers of women. He kills male prostitutes by bashing their skulls open with lifting weights. He even goes on to hang his boss and then rapes her dead body. DAMN! This guy's insane! I love it! Oh, the story, you ask... it's simple: Killer A (ANDY LAU) meets Killer B (ANITA YUEN). They fall in love and decide to leave the "business". Their boss sends Killer C (MARK CHENG) to do them in. Throw in a few outclassed detectives on their trail, and that's that in a nutshell. I know, I know, but I can think of worse things to watch on television.

Consider a gem by some, This film ultimately fails...

[Schwenkstar · 4/10 · 10 December 2005]

I read several reviews on Asian DVD sites that stated this is sort of a gem among actions films; a romance with stylized and well choreographed gun battles. Interested by these comments I decided to purchase this film as a "blind buy" since it was relatively cheap from where I got it (www.yesasia.com). However, upon viewing the film I would have to disagree with comments made by these reviewers...

The film featured a fairly conventional narrative that conformed to many clichés you expected from this genre. The film is essentially unoriginal in most respects. The film lacks any real artistic quality in the production of the film: the cinematography is relatively bland with static camera shots, the editing is standard, and the sound/music seems to possess recycled material from other action films. Lastly, the acting from the majority of the cast is often "over-the-top" and unbelievable...

However, this doesn't mean the film isn't without a few merits (albeit, minimally). The chemistry between the two leads - Andy Lau and Anita Yuen - is actually good and believable which is pretty much a result from their acting skills. The choreography of the action is the main highlight of the film, though they aren't memorable; they're good but no better than other action films of its ilk.

With the negative attributes so heavily outweighing the positive, I can not recommend this title. However, if you are a completest of Andy Lau films or of the Heroic Bloodshed genre (also called Gun-Fu and Bullet Ballet), this title won't be a complete disgrace to your collection... Though it won't add much either. Plus the cheap price helps.

Essentially for completest only, otherwise skip it.