A Chinese Odyssey Part One: Pandora's Box

1995 1h 28m CN

🙌

7.5

BANGER

⭐

7.5

IMDB

★7.5TMDB · 320★7.5IMDB · 9,288

ActionAdventureFantasyComedyRomanceDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

When the Goddess of Happiness tosses the Longevity Monk and his disciples out of heaven (because the Monkey King tried to attain immortality), the Monkey King is reincarnated as the Joker. He now spends his time chasing two jealous women. When one of them is dying, the Joker goes back in time in an attempt to save her.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Stephen Chow
Joker / Monkey King
Richard Ng Man-Tat
Piggy
Law Kar-Ying
Longevity Monk
Yammie Lam Kit-Ying
Spider Demon
Karen Mok Man-Wai
White-Bone Demon / Pak Jing Jing
Johnnie Kong
Sandy / Blindy
Lu Shuming
King Bull
Jeffrey Lau Chun-Wai
Grape Buddha

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jeffrey Lau Chun-Wai
Writers: Jeffrey Lau Chun-Wai, Jeffrey Lau Chun-Wai
Languages: Cantonese
Countries: Hong Kong, China

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

88 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

31 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Hong Kong, China.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "A Chinese Odyssey Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jeffrey Lau Chun-Wai, shot by Poon Hang-Sang. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Zhao Jiping. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Hai Kit-Wai shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jeffrey Lau Chun-Wai directs. Poon Hang-Sang behind the camera. Zhao Jiping scores. Hai Kit-Wai cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Hong Kong, China. Dialogue in Cantonese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

188 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
231 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3International production across 2 countries: Hong Kong, China.
4Part of the "A Chinese Odyssey Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
5Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
6Directed by Jeffrey Lau Chun-Wai, shot by Poon Hang-Sang. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by Zhao Jiping. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor Hai Kit-Wai shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9Stephen Chow and Richard Ng Man-Tat and Law Kar-Ying carry the top of the cast.
10IMDB entry: tt0112778 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 10 themes, including "martial arts", "based on novel or book", "monk", "time travel".
12Released under 23 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Poon Hang-Sang
Original score: Zhao Jiping
Editing: Hai Kit-Wai
Stunt coordinator: Tony Ching Siu-Tung
Runtime: 88 min · 1h 28m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $3,237,520
Original language: CN
Certification (US): IIB
IMDB: A Chinese Odyssey Part One: Pandora's Box (1995)
IMDB rating: 7.5/10 · 9,288 votes

Awards

3 wins & 1 nomination total

Part of

A Chinese Odyssey Collection

Fantasy adventure about the arrival of Buddhism in China. When the Goddess of Happiness tosses the Longevity Monk and his disciples out of heaven (because the Monkey King tried to attain immortality), the Monkey King is reincarnated as the Joker.