In order to really appreciate this film, you first have to get over what will probably be some shattered expectations. The movie is described as a "comedy-drama" and I've come across at least one commentator who described it as a "lighthearted" comedy. I'm not sure what movie that commentator was talking about, but "Happy Times" certainly isn't "lighthearted" nor did it come across to me as a comedy. There are some humorous moments in it (such as Li lying down on the massage table and having his head crash through the hole because it was too big) but for a good part of the movie I was feeling somewhat angry at what I was seeing, and, in the end, the overwhelming feeling I was left with was one of sadness. None of that is meant to say that this wasn't a good movie. It was. I was actually quite taken with it. It just wasn't what I was expecting at first and it took a while for me to reconcile my expectations with what I was actually seeing.
I said the movie left me with a feeling of sadness. That's largely because it was filled with sad characters. The movie revolves around Zhao, a lonely man who desperately wants to get married and who makes up a story about himself being a hotel owner to get a woman interested in him. The woman is a heavy-set twice divorced mom to a rather obnoxious son and the epitome of the wicked stepmother to 18 year old Wu - the blind daughter of one of the men who left her. She treats Wu like a servant and desperately wants to get rid of her, finally pawning her off on to Zhao, telling him to give her a job at his hotel. Zhao - carrying on the deceit - puts together a fake massage business (a legitimate one) and "hires" Wu to massage his friends, who finally end up having to pay her with fake money because they're all broke. Jie Dong was great as Wu, and Benshan Zhao equally good as Zhao.
My initial anger stemmed from the deceit that Wu was being surrounded by. That feeling changed to sadness when I realized that - aside from the stepmother - no one was being deliberately cruel to her. Zhao and friends really did seem to care for her, and Zhao develops an obviously affectionate, almost father-like relationship with her. Watching that relationship evolve was very interesting, but it all led up to - again - what I found a very sad ending, as Wu leaves to an unknown fate, and Zhao is abandoned by his girlfriend and then seriously hurt when he's hit by a truck and we're left not even knowing whether he'll survive. So, yes, it's sad and a bit heavy rather than lighthearted, but still quite well done with very good performances from the two leads that leave you with feelings of sympathy for both because in the end you really do like both Wu and Zhao. 7/10
I said the movie left me with a feeling of sadness. That's largely because it was filled with sad characters. The movie revolves around Zhao, a lonely man who desperately wants to get married and who makes up a story about himself being a hotel owner to get a woman interested in him. The woman is a heavy-set twice divorced mom to a rather obnoxious son and the epitome of the wicked stepmother to 18 year old Wu - the blind daughter of one of the men who left her. She treats Wu like a servant and desperately wants to get rid of her, finally pawning her off on to Zhao, telling him to give her a job at his hotel. Zhao - carrying on the deceit - puts together a fake massage business (a legitimate one) and "hires" Wu to massage his friends, who finally end up having to pay her with fake money because they're all broke. Jie Dong was great as Wu, and Benshan Zhao equally good as Zhao.
My initial anger stemmed from the deceit that Wu was being surrounded by. That feeling changed to sadness when I realized that - aside from the stepmother - no one was being deliberately cruel to her. Zhao and friends really did seem to care for her, and Zhao develops an obviously affectionate, almost father-like relationship with her. Watching that relationship evolve was very interesting, but it all led up to - again - what I found a very sad ending, as Wu leaves to an unknown fate, and Zhao is abandoned by his girlfriend and then seriously hurt when he's hit by a truck and we're left not even knowing whether he'll survive. So, yes, it's sad and a bit heavy rather than lighthearted, but still quite well done with very good performances from the two leads that leave you with feelings of sympathy for both because in the end you really do like both Wu and Zhao. 7/10