Review of The God of Cookery (1996) by Alexander C — 25 Nov 2012

"The God of Cookery," Stephen Chow's 37th appearance in a comedy in eight years, is a noticeable shift from the popular comedian's linguistic mo lai tau films of the early '90s, instead taking aim at the Asian and American markets simultaneously a la Jackie Chan's "Rumble in the Bronx" (1995) with this "Iron Chef" parody.

Here, Chow's greatest asset as an entertainer is manipulating his audience into laughing with a jerk whose built an empire on being a phony and a cheat; feeling empathy for him when it collapses; and then rooting for him as he tries to get his namesake back even though it was never his to begin with.

This is a cunningness rarely seen among Stephen Chow's peers that in-part makes the comedian Hong Kong's top box office draw.