'Detective Chinatown 3' review: Record-setting mystery-comedy tackles Tokyo


By AGENCY

If it isn't zombies, then it's men in black that have you running in full speed. Photos: Handout

The mega-successful Chinese franchise about a mismatched detective duo tackling baffling crimes in foreign destinations continues with a wildly uneven caper set in Tokyo.

With performances, plotting and visuals amped up to 11 as per usual, this hyperactive combination of Sherlock Holmes-type sleuthing and Three Stooges-style slapstick comedy offers plenty of zany fun, but the central murder-mystery contains so many convoluted diversions, digressions and detours it makes the whole enterprise play like a long stream-of-consciousness sketch with a glaringly hollow core.

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6 10

Summary:

​​​​​​​For all its narrative and structural shortcomings, the film is always visually arresting and frequently very funny as it switches tone and tack at the drop of a hat.

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Detective Chinatown

   

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