The Fortune Handbook

The Fortune Handbook (Chinese: 财神爷; pinyin: cái shén yé) is a 2017 Chinese New Year Singaporean comedy film directed by Kelvin Sng and starring Christopher Lee, Li Nanxing and Mark Lee. It was released in cinemas on January 26, 2017,[1][2] and is one of two films distributed by mm2 Entertainment during the Chinese New Year period in 2017, the other being Take 2.

The Fortune Handbook
Theatrical release poster
Directed byKelvin Sng
Written byWen Xue Ying
Produced byMelvin Ang
Jack Neo
Christopher Lee
Mark Lee
Li Nanxing
StarringChristopher Lee
Li Nanxing
Mark Lee
Vivian Lai
Xavier Ong
Jazliyana Lee
CinematographyChiu Wai Yin
Edited byHamster Low
Music byMo Ju Li
Production
companies
mm2 Entertainment
J Team Productions
Distributed bymm2 Entertainment
Shaw Organisation
Release date
  • 26 January 2017 (2017-01-26) (Singapore)
Running time
99 minutes
CountrySingapore
LanguagesMandarin
Teochew
BudgetS$1.3 million
Box officeS$1 million

Synopsis

Soh Hock (Christopher Lee), a never-do-well, is obsessed with becoming rich and constantly scheming to get the secret recipe to Hao Xing, his brother-in-law's (Li Nanxing) famous traditional Chinese pastry. When a God Of Fortune (Mark Lee) stumbles into his and his family's lives, things become messy.[1][3]

Cast

Cast Role
Christopher Lee Soh Hock
Li Nanxing Ren Haoxing
Mark Lee Huat God
Vivian Lai Ah Zhen, Soh Hock's wife
Xavier Ong Soh Hock's son
Jazliyana Lee Soh Hock's daughter
Marcus Chin Intern supervisor
Nathan Hartono Fortune God intern
Sheila Sim Fortune God intern
Ferlyn Wong Fortune God intern
Hossan Leong Fortune God intern
Chua Jin Sen a.k.a. Dr. Jiajia Fortune God intern
Dawn Yeoh Reporter
Zheng Geping Competition judge
Hong Huifang Competition judge
Lina Ng Contestant No.1
Eelyn Kok Contestant No.2
Josephus Tan Contestant No.2 's husband
Allan Moo Contestant No.3 's husband
Ho Ai Ling Ma Zi
Chantalle Ng Albee
Jasmine Sim Mel

Production

Casting and crew

Sng decided to gather the "Three Lees in Entertainment", Christopher Lee, Mark Lee and Li Nanxing, to star in a film together. According to an interview with Weekender Singapore, Sng said that "it started out as a joke, but all three of them actually agreed to do it". All three were listed as executive producers, together with Jack Neo and Melvin Ang. It was such a success that the actors started talking about their next project together.[4][5]

Filming

Li, who has always played "solemn and heavy" roles, such as a cop, lawyer or baddie, took on his first comedic role because of his co-stars, saying in an interview with The Straits Times that he "signed on because of the other two." Initially, he felt awkward being cast as Vivian Lai's ex-boyfriend due to the age gap, so Sng altered the role to be her brother instead.[6]

Filming started on October 31, 2016 with a production cost of $1.3 million, and lasted for 20 days.

Reception

Critical reception

Boon Chan of The Straits Times rated The Fortune Handbook a 2 out of 5 stars, stating that although important holiday themes such as "prosperity, the importance of family and bak kwa" are present, "the end result is far from savoury" as "(Sng's) characters laugh more than the audience - hearing laughter on the screen is not the same thing as watching a funny film".[7]

John Li of MovieXclusive.com rated the film a 2.5 out of 5 stars, citing the "countless mentions of brands or appearances of products" and that "viewers may not find all gags funny and end up wondering why the characters are laughing a lot more than the audiences".[8]

References

  1. Seah, May (2 November 2016). "Three Lees in a pod". Today. Retrieved 2016-11-02.
  2. Lee, Wei Lin (1 November 2016). "Christopher Lee, Mark Lee, Li Nanxing team up for comedy film". Toggle. Archived from the original on November 4, 2016. Retrieved 2016-11-02.
  3. "THE FORTUNE HANDBOOK (财神爷) COMMENCES FILMING". moviexclusive.com. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 2016-11-02.
  4. Chow, Pamela (13 January 2017). "Why The Fortune Handbook Is The CNY Movie To Catch". The Weekender. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  5. Lee, Wei Lin. "Christopher Lee, Mark Lee, Li Nanxing team up for comedy film". Toggle. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  6. Ng, Gwendolyn (25 January 2017). "The three big Lees of local TV collaborate for the first time in The Fortune Handbook". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
  7. Chan, Boon (25 January 2017). "Festive fare for young and old". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  8. Li, John. "THE FORTUNE HANDBOOK (财神爷) (2017)". MovieXclusive.com. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
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