The Case Of The Spirit Of Banana (HK 1994)

Rating: *
Review Date: 12/18/16
Cast: Alex Man, Dick Wei, Kwok Keung Cheung, Lin Tsai Hung

Ugh. A disappointing attempt to combine action, comedy, and romance with a supernatural twist. Dick Wei is a shamed ex-police officer and the target of a sting operation led by Yu Sha (Kwok Keung Cheung). During a fight in a banana plantation, Yu unwittingly releases the bound spirit of a murdered girl named Lotus (pretty Lin Tsai Hung). She falls in love with Yu and keeps him from harm whenever the bad guys come after him. Unfortunately, she also messes up Yu's relationship with his condescending, gold-digging, bitch of a fiancée. He's actually much better off with Lotus, except that a low-rent ghost buster is constantly trying to catch her. The climax builds up to a free-for-all gun fight and a hand-to-hand showdown between Yu and the main villain. As with all "boy falls in love with a ghost" stories, this one ends tragically with broken hearts all around.

The film looks decent and features a couple of really nice optical effects, but it's painfully tedious to watch. The story is weak and confusing, the characters are uninteresting, the acting is overly exaggerated, and the fight scenes are embarrassingly poor. Alex Man and Dick Wei only show up for extended cameos and have very little to do, which is unfortunate. Lin Tsai Hung is pretty, but that can only hold your interest for so long. The attempts at comedy fall flat, and the drama and romance don't fare much better. Apart from the semi-competent cinematography, it's pretty much a waste of time on all accounts.