At the Hong Kong Movies: 600 Reviews from 1988 Till the Handover

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Summary: A First-rate Guide to Hong Kong Cinema
Review: This book is not only a collection of reviews, but a veritable history of recent Hong Kong cinema, as seen through the eyes of the man who is arguably the leading expert on Chinese Film today. The reviews are not only informed, elegant, witty, and to the point; together they reveal a consistent and illuminating perspective on the Hong Kong film industry of the last decade. Fonoroff clearly has his own, Hollywood-derived aesthetic, but in this his judgments always have the ring of truth insofar as the Hollywood style remains the pretension of most mainstream Honk Kong film products through to today. In this respect, Fonoroff's "At the Hong Kong Movies" is an excellent companion piece to his earlier volume "Silver Light" (still largely unavailable in the US), which is an indispensible pictorial history of Hong Kong cinema from its inception through the 1960s. Together the two volumes provide the best introduction to Hong Kong film that one could wish.

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Summary: Does Fonoroff even LIKE HK movies?
Review: This book is so snarky and consistently negative I can only wonder why the author has written about HK movies for this long! There are several good books on HK flicks out there and no reason to buy this misguided publication.

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Summary: Excellent & essential for any Hong Kong movie buff.
Review: This book is unique. A really insightful and comprehensive view of over 600 Hong Kong movies by someone who really knows what he's writing about. In terms of length, kind of midway between Pauline Kael and Leonard Maltin. Paul Fonoroff writes with wit & insight. You may not agree with his views, but he makes a strong case for his unique point of view.

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Summary: Great Reference Book for HK Movie Fans
Review: This book really tells it like it is, and is comprehensive to boot. Fonoroff is highly critical but he supports his opinions well. It's refreshing to hear such honest opinions and not the usual "rah rah" "isn't it wonderful" that so many Asian movie addicts feel obligated to dish out. Fonoroff is also lavish with his praise when he finds a movie he respects, which admittedly is rare. He also likes the trashy guilty pleasure flicks. I think what he respects most is movies that aren't pretentious, which includes the bad & the ugly along with the good. You can't deny he doesn't know his stuff. Unlike most foreign critics of Hong Kong movies, he's lived there for 20 years and speaks the language, plus he has a solid background in Hong Kong cinema.