The Royal Tramp Collection DVD Review

I’m just going to say right out of the gate that I have a difficult time reviewing a DVD like The Royal Tramp Collection, which includes the Hong Kong films Royal Tramp and Royal Tramp II, appropriately enough. But before I address my difficulties in objectively reviewing these films, I must first provide some context regarding the genre that these films fall under, which is called Mo Lei Tau.

A user on the Internet Movie Database summed up Mo Lei Tau nicely, so I’m going to give credit where credit is due and simply use that description verbatim. Mo Lei Tau is a name given to a type of humor originating in Hong Kong during the late 20th century. It is a phenomenon which has grown largely from its presentation in modern film media. Its humor arises from the complex interplay of cultural subtleties significant in Hong Kong. Typical constituents of this humor include nonsensical parodies, juxtaposition of contrasts, and sudden surprises in spoken dialogue and action.

It is in that description of Mo Lei Tau that you will find my inherent difficulty in reviewing these films. A large part of the humor found in this genre of film stems from parodies and statements about Hong Kong culture. As such, a good portion of the humor is lost on ignorant Western viewers like me who have no idea what the joke is referring to, and there are a lot of those moments in the Royal Tramp films. Whether the filmmakers are parodying a cigarette commercial or commenting on the position of Eunuchs in ancient Hong Kong societies, I continually found myself scratching my head at many scenes. Sometimes they were still funny in one way or another, but I always had the feeling that I was missing a large part of the joke.

As I was watching the films I thought of an inverse example that some Western viewers might be able to relate to. Perhaps a Western viewer watching a Royal Tramp film feels the way that an Eastern viewer might feel watching Family Guy. Although the Royal Tramp films and Family Guy are completely different from one another in most ways, their style of humor has a lot in common. A large portion of Family Guy’s humor comes from specific pop culture references. Without any prior knowledge of what the show is referencing, viewers would find themselves confused. Even those of us who can appreciate most of Family Guy’s references can relate to the occasional feeling of awkwardness when a reference is lost on us because we haven’t seen the particular film the show is parodying. Such was my feeling when watching the Royal Tramp films.

But enough about what I didn’t get about the films. Despite the fact that a lot of the humor was lost on me, I was still able to find a lot to like in the movies. The star of the films is an actor by the name of Stephen Chow who viewers might recognize from his most recent international success entitled Kung Fu Hustle. Most of that film’s success in the states was due to its heavy reliance on slapstick physical comedy, and while a lot of Royal Tramp’s humor may be more esoteric than that, it still has a lot of physical humor that proves to be universal. Although some of it ends up being a little bit lowbrow for my tastes, it’s a fine example of that type of silly entertainment.

Although there might actually be more comedy than there is action in the Royal Tramp films, the kung fu sequences are highly entertaining as well. Although physical comedy takes up a lot of the screen time during the movie, when the kung fu sequences start, they’re played almost entirely straight. This means that they’re carefully choreographed and gracefully performed by the stunt performers, with the aid of wires and harnesses a la Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. They’re not groundbreaking in their delivery, but they are competently and beautifully executed nonetheless.

For those viewers who are less informed regarding the various comical references found in the two films, the audio commentaries on each film by Hong Kong Cinema Expert Bey Logan are an absolute must. Logan is the resident expert on all of Dragon Dynasty’s DVDs. He’s provided numerous insightful commentaries on various Asian films and the commentaries on The Royal Tramp Collection are perhaps some of his best yet. He offers an array of knowledge and his commentaries on this DVD set prove to be invaluable in learning more about the filmmakers, the films themselves, and the historical context in which they’re set. The accompanying interview and theatrical trailers are worth a look, but the commentaries contain the treasure trove of information.

The Royal Tramp Collection seems somewhat difficult to recommend at first glance. It’s a cult classic in its own right, but a lot of its trademark comedy doesn’t translate well to a western audience. Because of this, I would’ve initially only recommended the film wholeheartedly to viewers familiar with Hong Kong culture. However, Bey Logan’s commentaries on this 2-Disc DVD set are so informative as to increase one’s appreciation of the films. As such, I wholeheartedly recommend the 2-Disc Special Edition of The Royal Tramp Collection as long as you’re willing to invest a little extra time in the films in order to gain a fuller appreciation of them.