Director Gavin Lin (林孝謙), who is known for his romantic movies, tries his hand at comedy with Welcome to the Happy Days (五星級魚干女), an uplifting story about how an unlikely couple save a family-run guesthouse from going out of business.
Set in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), the film initially feels like promotional material, with American backpacker Allen (Andrew Chau, 周厚安) commenting how Taiwan is a wonderful place to live.
But the plot takes a promising turn when Allen arrives at a hot spring guesthouse named The Happy Days. However, there are no lodgers inside the quaint, Japanese-style house, only a wacky desk clerk and Fanju (Alice Ko, 柯佳嬿), who is temporarily taking charge of the guesthouse after her grandmother broke her leg.
Photo courtesy of Swallow Wings Films
Allen volunteers to work there in exchange for accommodation and Fanju reluctantly accepts. Together, they attempt to woo back customers, but instead, end up discovering a long-buried secret of Fanju’s grandmother.
The biggest surprise is Ko’s high-energy performance, who plays Fanju. Ko makes a smooth transition from drama to comedy by playing the goofy heroine in one of her most memorable performances to date.
Ko’s gratifying blend of slapstick and humor makes the Nintendo-games-playing slob a lovable heroine.
Local films seldom offer memorable roles for women, and Ko’s performance suggests that Taiwanese cinema may finally have its own funny leading lady, who can hopefully go on to have a career like Hong Kong’s Sandra Ng (吳君如) or Sammi Cheng (鄭秀文).
Equally energetic is Chau, the son of Mando-pop icon Wakin Chau (周華健). Simple, fun-loving and easily excited, his character is like an overgrown boy.
Co-writers Lin and Hermes Lu (呂安弦) neatly tap into Taiwan’s hybrid culture and elicit humor from multi-linguistic wordplays.
The dramatic side, however, is the film’s weakest point. The romance between Fanju and Allen comes too little, too late and the plot, written so as to push the characters to change and grow, sometimes feels contrived.
For those who wonder why there are so many scenes taking place by Xinbeitou MRT Station (新北投捷運站), the film is part of a series of movies made under the rubric of Metro of Love (台北愛情捷運).
Produced by Yeh Tien-lun (葉天倫), each film tells a love story, has a different director and is filmed at different MRT stations.
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Due to the Lunar New Year holiday, from Sunday, Jan. 26, through Sunday, Feb. 2, there will be no Features pages. The paper returns to its usual format on Monday, Feb. 3, when Features will also be resumed. Kung Hsi Fa Tsai!
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