Review: Love in Disguise
By Loong Wai Ting
14 Aug 2010 at 12:26pm VOIZE
WANG LeeHom looks and sounds good in his music videos, but is he any better on the big screen? Fans might say yes, but others may tell you to not expect too much from a teenage-like rom-com movie. So it was when I least expected it, the movie hit me like an on-going truck. Okay, the truck reference may be an exaggeration but here’s it – Love in Disguise has a surprisingly good plot, ‘almost there’ acting and an awesome soundtrack.
Really, who would have expected that a singer-turned-actor-turned-director would be able to turn an average script into a good story? Love in Disguise marks LeeHom’s first attempt at directing. Prior to his debut, his only experience was directing his music videos, a totally different ballgame. And although he still has plenty to catch up as regards his acting skills, his performance here fares much better than in Little Big Soldier.
The movie has a similar plot like most teenage rom-coms: boy meets girl, not sure how he feels, finally realises he’s in love. Oops, did I say too much? Actually the story is pretty predictable from beginning till end, with perhaps a teeny twist here and there. The story attempts to show a different side of the entertainment industry in a less complicated way.
The entertainment value here is truly maximised. There are scenes of fun and happiness and a steady run emotional ones. Neither a happy movie nor a heart-breaking one, Love in Disguise presents a canvas on how your regular guy or gal feels towards relationships and commitment.
There are also attractive visuals to help get the messages across. I think the visual effects are bold and fresh. But then, the effects are at times overly done, rather annoying especially when it takes more than three minutes. But overall, the effects suffice to allow the audience to feel what the characters are feeling.
Being a LeeHom movie, music plays an important role in the movie. Though not a Broadway-type musical, the movie uses music to further illustrate the story or to convey the characters’ feelings for each other. And if you’re a big fan of LeeHom’s music, his songs definitely hit every note. There is also a song taken from his upcoming album 18 Martial Arts.
Love in Disguise is proof that LeeHom is ready to take another step forward as a movie director. Being in a bigger production with some of the biggest name in the entertainment industry like Ang Lee (Lust, Caution) and Jackie Chan (Little Big Soldier) proves to be a plus point for LeeHom as he picks up invaluable directing skills from them. Watch with an open mind, and enjoy the efforts of a first-time director.
Love in Disguise tells the story of Du Ming Han (Wang LeeHom), a pop star so famous that everyone wants a piece of him. For Du Ming, it feels as if he has conquered the world, until he accidentally bumps into Song XiaoQing (Crystal Liu) – a music student at the Far East Music Academy. He is impressed by her ability at playing the guzheng. He poses as a poor villager from the border to enter the music academy, just to be close to her. With his good buddy Wei Zhi Bo (Chen HanDian), both of them have to juggle their real career and guises as poor villagers in the academy.
Source:
http://voize.my/movies/review-love-in-disguise/
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