The Bodyguard (AKA My Beloved Bodyguard) is a Hong Kong/Chinese co-production martial arts/drama movie directed by Sammo Kam-Bo Hung. My Beloved Bodyguard (2016) movie review is below
This is one of those movies that doesn’t know what it wants to be. It is an action, comedy, or drama? Well it seems to be all. I am not sure if this is a good thing as it does give the movie a mixed vibe.
The premise of the movie revolves around an retired Central Security Bureau (CSB) officer named Mr. Ding who befriends a young girl that has a good for nothing father that has gambling issues. Ding is also going through dementia and seems to be constantly aloof and forgetting things. His quiet and lonely life suddenly stops when he realizes he needs to step in and protect an innocent life.
The movie dragged a bit. It was very character driven piece with few comedic moments thrown in for good measure that shows Ding as a good guy who likes his peaceful life. When the action hits, it feels off. What I mean by that is that it was filmed in a way that makes it blurry and slower than ideal frame rate. IMO this is a lot of times done to hide the fact that actors can’t do kung fu well enough. However, a lot of people know Sammo is a good fighter. In fact many would argue he is a better fighter than an actor.
It just seemed odd he would incorporate this effect for his action scenes since we know he can fight well. Sammo also incorporates this X-Ray effect into his action where we see bones breaking. What should be unique feels a bit odd as many scenes involve this effect.
The drama aspect surrounds his dementia, his landlord’s casual advances, and the responsibility he feels for the safety of the little girl he befriended. He is so absent minded most of the time that we feel bad for him but also a bit confused he ends up going on a kung fu rampage later on in the movie. He is mild mannered, keeps it to himself type of guy who takes on hardened criminals. It just seemed a bit odd to process this.
If you expect this movie to be a throwback to Sammo’s old glory days that made him a legend, you will be disappointed. If, however, you are looking for a drama movie with a bunch of weirdly distorted fight scenes (and some blood), this movie is for you. I was not sure to whom this movie is supposed to appeal to. To me it felt kind of average and not memorable. To some it would appear to be a drama of human emotion and the idea that past always stays with you no matter how hard you try to run away from it. Whatever the case may be, I think there is something for everyone in this movie. Whether it will be memorable is up to you, but it tried to appeal to as broad audience as it could.
Thanks for reading my beloved Bodyguard (2016) movie review
