Film Name: 奇谋妙计五福星 / Winners and Sinners / Five Lucky Stars / 奇謀妙計五福星
Friends are an incredibly important presence in our lives. Life is joyful precisely because we have friends by our side! So many things feel dull when done alone, but become endlessly fun when shared with a group of friends! So if you have a group of friends willing to go crazy with you, that’s absolutely something to be proud of!
Clearly, Teapot (played by Sammo Hung, who later changed his stage name to “Guizucai”) had just such a group of friends. Dead Throat (played by Andy Wong), Curly Jack (played by John Tsang), Vaseline (played by Alex Tsing), and Lucky (played by Fong Kwai-fan). The five met in prison, bonded over shared interests, and became an unbreakable crew! This cemented the core lineup of the Five Lucky Stars. Though subsequent films saw name and cast changes, the series’ formula remained largely unchanged.
When cops hit a dead end, they call on the Lucky Stars for help. A female lead tied to the plot gets teased by the brothers. Ultimately, the Five Lucky Stars successfully complete the mission. This is the core formula of the series. As the inaugural installment, “Winners and Sinners” masterfully introduced this template to audiences: the Five Lucky Stars driving the plot, featuring a beautiful female lead in each film, and incorporating cameos from popular stars of the era to deliver one hilarious escapade after another.
The film boasts numerous highlights: the Five Lucky Stars intimidating a minibus driver, the jealousy-fueled rivalry upon meeting the young lady (played by Cherie Chung), Deadly Throat’s invisibility trick, Jackie Chan’s roller-skating prowess, and of course, the action sequences featuring Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan. These scenes remain timeless and thrilling even today!
Each of the Five Lucky Stars has distinct traits: varying physiques—fat, thin, tall, short—and clearly defined personalities. Teapot is honest, Dead Throat is neurotic, Curly is adorably clueless, Vaseline is shrewd, and Lo Chi is seasoned. This diversity fuels the story’s brilliance! Combined with Cherie Chung’s stunning beauty and Jackie Chan’s formidable presence, this all-star cast is absolutely perfect. With supporting performances from Lam Ching-ying, Yuen Wah, and Yip Tong, this film marked the perfect beginning of the Lucky Stars series. It allowed Golden Harvest to counter New Art City’s Best Partners series with its own franchise.
Of course, with comedies like this, don’t overanalyze the plot logic. After all, if we insisted on logic, many comedies would lose their charm. This film doesn’t force the humor either. Just go with the flow, and you’ll be swept up in the fun. Then all you need to do is laugh heartily!
How fortunate we were in our youth to have such an outstanding cast deliver such brilliant performances! This kind of joy is truly worth savoring. I believe that even decades from now, watching this film again will still make me laugh out loud.
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