Film Review: It’s a Drink! It’s a Bomb! 聖誕奇遇結良緣 (1985) - Hong Kong
Reviewed by Andrew Chan (Film Critic Circle of Australia)
I rated it 7/10
Rating: ★ ★ ★ 1/2
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There is something endearingly lunatic about certain mid-1980s Hong Kong comedies that throw together crime, slapstick, romance, and holiday cheer as if the script were written during a caffeine-fueled all-nighter. “It’s a Drink! It’s a Bomb!” is one of those movies. Its very title sounds like a half-drunk pitch meeting, and the film largely lives up to that spirit: silly, energetic, occasionally inspired, and never quite as disciplined as it could be.
The story concerns a diabolical invention—a bomb cleverly disguised as a can of soda. A corrupt cop hopes to sell this lethal beverage to some shady Japanese buyers, but the can goes missing, and a ragtag collection of Hong Kong everymen and women (including a cheerful everyman played by George Lam and the reliably hapless John Sham) find themselves chasing it through Christmas-season misadventures. Maggie Cheung, in one of her very early roles, adds a spark of charm and wide-eyed energy that would later make her a superstar. The plot is less a tightly wound thriller than a series of escalating gags and chases, some of which land with delightful absurdity while others feel like they wandered in from a different movie.
Director David Chung keeps things moving at a brisk pace, which is wise because the moment the film slows down, its thinness starts to show. The action sequences have that classic Hong Kong physicality—stunts performed with cheerful disregard for safety or physics—and there are enough visual jokes involving the explosive soda can to keep you smiling. Yet the film never quite decides whether it wants to be a broad farce, a light crime caper, or a budding romance, so it tries to be all three and only partially succeeds at each.
What carries the picture is the sheer likability of its leads and the unpretentious joy it takes in its own ridiculousness. George Lam brings an easygoing warmth that prevents the movie from tipping over into pure cartoon, while Sham handles the physical comedy with the bruised dignity of a man who knows he’s the universe’s punchline. Cheung, even this young, already displays the screen presence that would define her later career; you can sense she’s destined for better material, but she commits fully to the nonsense here.
“It’s a Drink! It’s a Bomb!” is not a great film. It’s not even a particularly consistent one. But at its best moments—when the chases accelerate, the soda can threatens to blow at the worst possible time, and the cast seems to be having the time of their lives—it captures a freewheeling spirit that many more polished productions lack. It’s the cinematic equivalent of a good, messy party: you wouldn’t necessarily want it every weekend, but you’re glad you showed up.
Worth a watch on a lazy afternoon when you’re in the mood for something light, loud, and cheerfully stupid. Just don’t expect Chungking Express—this is Maggie Cheung still learning the ropes, and the movie is all the more endearing for it. (Neo, 2026)