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A deliriously silly slapstick parody of American gangster films, in which Hong Kong is made to resemble anything-goes Chicago during Prohibition. The comic style is recklessly eclectic, with echoes of everything from the Three Stooges to Monty Python. The laws of physics are shrugged off as anannoyance, and just when you think things are about to level off, a trio of guys in duck masks pops into the frame, warbling "Chin Chin" in barbershop harmony. Stars George Lam, Teddy Robin Kwan (the Danny DeVito of Hong Kong), and Karl Mak (from the Aces Go Places films) are old hands at this, anddirector Tsui Hark (Peking Opera Blues) has an astonishing control of rhythm--he can build the laugh-momentum of a scene with an orchestration of line readings, cutting, sound effects, and camera angles. When Clues was released in 1981, Tsui was pummeled by hometown critics for abandoningthe hard-nosed social satire of his early films. But his brand of foolishness is a thing of beauty, and no apologies are necessary. --David Chute ... Read more