Danxi Bookstore brings you the Chinese New Year comedy “Full of Gold and Jade” (also known as “Full Seat”) starring director Tsui Hark, Leslie Cheung, Yuen Yongyi, and Zhao Wenzhuo! On February 21st, Toronto’s Innis Town Hall!
Zhao Gangsheng (played by Leslie Cheung) was tired of the underworld life and wanted to wash his hands in a golden basin and go to Canada to pursue his idol Momoe Yamaguchi, but the immigration route he chose was actually to take the chef exam in a Canadian hotel. One day, Zhao Gangsheng met the master chef Long Kunbao (played by Zhao Wenzhuo) in a restaurant, and Long Kunbao instructed him to study with his old acquaintance Boss Ou (played by Luo Jiaying) in Manhan Building. In the meantime, Hong Kong Sheng and Boss Ou’s daughter Jiahui (played by Yuen Yongyi) inadvertently set off fireworks.
One day, Huang Rong, the heir of the Niu faction, came to the door to challenge, and later used tricks to poach all the masters under him. At this time, only Hong Kong students stepped forward and looked for a master who could be a Manchu and Han banquet with Jiahui, that is, Liao Jie (played by Zhong Zhentao), who inexplicably retired from the culinary world five years ago…
“Full of Gold” is regarded as the pioneering work of Hong Kong’s food film modeled after a cooking competition. For the first time, director Tsui Hark cleverly integrated the techniques he used in martial arts films into the combination of Chinese New Year films and food films, thus opening a precedent for this genre. Since then, many films, including “God of Food”, have drawn inspiration from it, which shows its groundbreakingness. In this 1995 movie, you can also see young Leslie Cheung, Yuen Yongyi, Zhao Wenzhuo and others at the peak of their state. (Zhao Wenzhuo’s plastic Cantonese is so cute!) And the Hong Kong Chinese New Year films of that year had a naïve and simple happiness, which may be the more precious experience that we do not see now.