The Merry Wife (1972)

Kim Soo-Yong

Hong Kong

84 min, color, Mandarin (English subtitles)

Review © 2003 Branislav L. Slantchev

It's a comedy, trust me. You might even laugh once in a while. Or perhaps not. At least you are not likely to get bored in the meager 82 minutes this feature runs. No danger of choking with unstoppable laughing spasm, but no falling asleep either. An utterly lovable and harmless comedy that carries so much of 1960s innocence and charm that it is impossible not to like it.

Li Ching is Zhenzhen	Ah, the innocent 1960s...

The 35-year old Mr. Lin (Ling Yun, who was one of the Shaw Brothers best leading men, also well-known for his portrayal of moody swordsmen in tons of wuxia films) is a teacher who gets married to the 17-year old Zhenzhen (Li Ching). If that does not immediately make you convulse in laughter, there's the guaranteed comedic stunt when they decide that she should finish her high school studies in the same school where he is a teacher. The catch is that for some unfathomable reason, no one (except the principal) can know of their relationship.

At Granny's (fake) deathbed	Ling Yun is the handsome teacher Lin

So far so good. To expand the possibilities for merriment, Zhenzhen also lies to their neighbors that she and Lin are actually brother and sister. Why she'd do that is anyone's guess although it may have something to do with Lin uttering the word "Errand" at an inappropriate time.

Sweet seventeen (going on 23)	How my wife gets what she wants

To make sure that the couple runs into problems immediately (as if Zhenzhen's inability to cook and their having separate beds was not cause enough for apprehension about their marital bliss), Lin is very, and I mean, very, popular with the girls at his school. He is, of course, quite handsome, but the giggling and hysterics worthy of a Beatles concert may have been a bit over the top. He is pursued by the old librarian matron (Ouyang Shafei) and the stunningly beautiful supporting actress Ling Ling who plays (convincingly) a spoiled rich (redundant?) high schooler. Very soon Zhenzhen is pursued by an obnoxious and ugly guy who rides a motorcycle and then by the no less obnoxious and ugly teacher played by Chang Pei-shan.

He's NOT the tennis teacher!	Nothing good ever came from snooping

Jealousy hits hard almost immediately, but why it should do so remains unexplained, and perhaps inexplicable. There are the usual situations where a word or two from the characters would set everything straight and where one cannot help but expect normal people to say that word. But not these characters, they are stoic, and they are dedicated to ensure the merriment of the crowds by purposefully creating even less probable comedies of errors, just for the sheer fun of it.

Bowling for Revenge	How my wife wins all arguments with me

Needless to say, the students find out that there's something fishy going on between their new class-mate and the good-looking teacher. And also naturally, the neighbor tries to set up Mr. Lin on a bunch of blind-dates while his colleague is sniffing around the door wondering why Lin is prancing in nothing but a towel in Zhenzhen's apartment. Everything ends with the couple getting found out and being forced to tender their resignations on the spot. Except the students "rebel" and get them reinstated by ripping the documents out of the principal's hands and tearing them to shreds. (Something that in my school would have gotten a student expelled before she could say "discipline.")

Ling Ling, the perpetual supporting actress	Ah, the good ole cruel high school...

Whether one can believe that Li Ching, who was 22 at the time, could pass for a 17-year old on looks only does not matter because she certainly could pass for a teenager (maybe not even high school) with her adorable pouting, utterly unwarranted jumps to conclusions, total misinterpretation of innocent events, childish revenge fantasies, and lighting switches from one mood into another. No wonder her role won her the award for Most Popular Actress at the Asian Film Festival. She delivers, no question about it. So does Ling Yun, but that's for the female viewers to assess properly.

Snoop and ye shall find	Gratuitous shot of Li Ching

A good-humored, light-hearted, and innocent look at an era that was probably as angst-free as it can possibly get, The Merry Wife was a pleasing watch. Make sure you see the original trailer which promises endless fun with the tagline "A woman's place is in the kitchen or the bedroom. But instead, she in the classroom!" Don't know about "subtle humor" but it certainly did make me "smile with understanding." One thing that I am reminded how badly I miss, are the high-school uniforms. Ours weren't as sexy as these (or the Japanese ones) because girls wore their skirts at most to below the knee, not one foot above it. But what the hell, skirts did look so much better!

We don't need no education	We don't need no thought control

The Celestial DVD is very nice, and it's one of the new batch with anamorphic transfers. The picture is in the original 1:2.35 "ShawScope" widescreen and has been restored very well (just compare to the original trailer). The Mandarin soundtrack Dolby Digital is mono and is quite crisp, nothing to complain about. The English (removable) subtitles are readable and error-free (although they did differ from the ones in the trailer). The disc has the usual extras: trailers (for this film and other releases), still gallery, production notes, and talent files. Very nice, but this disc probably won't be in danger of getting worn out in your player.

August 7, 2003