Sammo Hung's first film as a director in twenty years is THE BODYGUARD, aka MY BELOVED BODYGUARD, a Hong Kong/Chinese co-production that also features Hung in the leading role. It's definitely a mixed bag of a movie, a mixture of only semi-successful character and human drama with some crime genre tropes, cliches, and martial arts scenes. As with many films these days, the trailer is an example of false advertising, making this look like an action-packed movie wheras in reality it's quite slow and sedate, only kicking into gear in the last thirty minutes.

I love Hung as an actor but he gives a thoroughly subdued turn here; I found him more sympathetic (and his acting finer) in HEART OF THE DRAGON. Andy Lau gives an energetic performance in support and I was delighted to see various cameos from old Hung buddies like Yuens Wah and Biao as well as Tsui Hark and Karl Maka; it's just a pity they're all so brief. The film's story is quite predictable and has some slow spots, although the action scenes are fun and seem in part to have been inspired by the likes of WARRIOR KING and THE RAID 2. I could have done without the animated bone-breaking all the time, but generally the choreography works so there's little to complain about. A lot of us were hoping that THE BODYGUARD would be a new classic to rank alongside Hung's old hits, and it's disappointing that it's not. But you could do worse, and superficially it's not too bad.

Actually quite the forgettable character here. But it's an illness he has - which does not make him a good witness. To anything - much less a crime he saw. Having said all that, since it is Sammo Hung you can bet there is a lot of fighting going on - emphasized with some CGI (the impact of the things Hungs character is doing).

And while there are some fights throughout, the ending felt or reminded me a little bit of the movie Unforgiven ... the old man who has to deal with a lot of bad guys. Hung having dementia ... he does not use the tools we've seen in something like Memento - just in case you though that. Add to that a side story with Andy Lau ... also quite action packed when he has the chance and certainly one of the best stunt set pieces set in a staircase ... and you have quite the entertaining movie, that also is giving you a story to have fun with (though fun may be the wrong choice of word ... since it's more a drama)

I was fortunate enough to get the chance to sit down to watch the 2016 movie "My Beloved Bodyguard" (aka "Wo de te gong ye ye") here in 2021, and I must admit that this was definitely an entertaining movie.

Sure, I hadn't even heard about the movie prior to getting to sit down to watch it. But that was hardly an issue, since this was a Hong Kong movie and it had the likes of Sammo Kam-Bo Hung and Andy Lau on the cast list. So needless to say that of course I had to sit down to watch this movie from writer Jun Jiang and director Sammo Kam-Bo Hung.

Well, you got to admit that veteran Hong Kong actor and martial artist Sammo Kam-Bo Hung definitely still got it. He puts on a very memorable and good performance in this movie, and the role he played really fit him well in the movie. And it was also a treat to see Andy Lau in a semi-crooked role here. And the movie have some nice appearances by Hark Tsui, Biao Yuen, Karl Maka and Wah Yuen - so there is something of a treat for us long-time fans of the Hong Kong cinema.

And it should be pointed out that "My Beloved Bodyguard" is a detour from the usual comedy martial arts that Sammo Kam-Bo Hung is known and loved for. This 2016 movie is fairly brutal, as there are lots of bones broken throughout the course of the movie, and it is done in a rather visceral manner too.

The storyline was really enjoyable and the pacing of the movie was high throughout the course of the entire movie. And that made for a very fast-paced and enjoyable movie.

"My Beloved Bodyguard" is a combination of many genres; drama, crime, action and martial arts. And director Sammo Kam-Bo Hung managed to pull it off quite nicely for a wholesome movie.

This is a movie that is well-worth taking the time to sit down to watch, as it is entertaining from beginning to end. My rating of "My Beloved Bodyguard" lands on a seven out of ten stars.