Genre: Gambling

Not as saturated with action as some of its ilk of the time but a solid gangster gambling drama nonetheless with the two leads at the top of their game.

This isn’t the best ever Hong Kong movie – it isn’t even the best ever Hong Kong gambling movie – but it could have been much worse.

It’s best viewed as an occasionally enjoyable diversion that, on sporadic occasions, hints at how good a reboot of one of the 80s most iconic film series could be.

‘From Vegas To Macau II’ gets very mild commendation for a few nods to past glories and the occasional joke that doesn’t feel like waterboarding.

Packed with the deluge of banality and popular references that will doubtlessly age the film well before it’s time, this third part is every bit as frustrating and lazy as the one that came before it.

As an introduction to the Hui brothers or Hong Kong comedy in general, this is a fine starting point.

It is a true genre-defining classic that will go down in Hong Kong cinema history as one of the greats.

Much like a television movie version of ‘God of Gamblers’, but stripped of many of the elements that made the original work, this 2020 unofficial update is low budget and low entertainment value.

The film has neither the charm or magic of the original ‘God Of Gamblers’ and fails to competently put together a back story that is worthy of its hero.

With lazy writing and weak comedy, ‘God Of Gamblers II’ often feels like little more than a typical Wong Jing cash grab.

Just when you thought the ‘God Of Gamblers’ series was dead and buried, Wong Jing somehow manages to find a pretty nifty way of bringing it back.

‘Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler’ is a unique and very entertaining film if you can get on board with its offbeat vibe and characters. Different but good.