“Love Contractually” debuted in China on Tuesday. The romantic comedy stars Chang Hsiao-chuan and returning actress Sammi Cheng. Her role, Katrina, is a company executive with trust issues against men whom she considers as cheater.
But because she wants to have a baby, she came up with a crazy plan to pay big money to the right sperm donor. Katrina picks Xiao Bo (Chang Hsiao-chuan), a former paratrooper who becomes a courier and later Katrina’s assistant, as the sperm donor.
Sperm Donation
While sperm donation used to be a taboo, it is now and open subject of discussion in China. “Love Contractually” would develop the topic more dramatically, but in an interesting and humorous way, the 44-year-old former Cantonese pop singer said, China Daily reported.
She took the highhanded role because Sammi Cheng sees it as a new challenge since she has not acted in a romantic comedy for the last two to three years. Her previous films, “Everlasting Regret” and “Love on a Diet” were pure romance movies.
As a pop singer, her music albums sold with million copies, while she has 30 movies and dozens of awards as proof of her success in Hong Kong’s entertainment industry. But despite her success, Sammi Cheng, like actor Qiao Ren Liang, battled depression.
Battling Depression
During the three years she was suffering from depression, Sammi Cheng woke up every morning in desperation. However, her family and friends helped her deal with the personal crisis. Filming “Love Contractually” in six cities in France and China likely helped the actress in her recovery phase. The movie’s plot twist was set in Normandy, a landmark World War II city.
Besides the twist, a colorful house in Norman also provided the film’s last part a unique touch of romance, said Liu Nan, director of “Love Contractually.” He was referring to the paraglide ride taken by Sammi Cheng and Chang Hsiao-chuan over northwestern France which provided moviegoers are bird’s eye view of more ancient buildings and the natural scenery.
However, the picturesque scenes failed to impress The Strait Times writer Boon Chan who advised dating couples to avoid the film since it is not a genuine romance or comedy movie. Rather, “there is only plenty of nothing between” Sammi Cheng and Chang Hsiao-chuan to sustain the debut film by director Liu Nan which besides being annoying “turns maudlin in the last stretch.”