Love on a Diet
Love on a Diet (Chinese: 瘦身男女) is a 2001 Hong Kong romantic comedy film produced and directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-fai, starring Andy Lau and Sammi Cheng.
| Love on A Diet | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Traditional | 瘦身男女 |
| Simplified | 瘦身男女 |
| Mandarin | Shòu Shēn Nán Nǚ |
| Cantonese | Sau3 San1 Naam4 Neoi2 |
| Directed by | Johnnie To Wai Ka-fai |
| Produced by | Johnnie To Wai Ka-fai |
| Written by | Wai Ka-fai Yau Nai-hoi |
| Starring | Andy Lau Sammi Cheng |
| Music by | Cacine Wong |
| Cinematography | Cheng Siu-Keung |
| Edited by | Law Wing-cheung Wong Wing-ming |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | China Star Entertainment Group |
Release date | 21 June 2001 |
Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Cantonese Japanese English |
| Box office | HK$40,435,886 |
The film reunites Lau and Cheng, who last paired up in 2000's Needing You.... For their roles, both actors play obese characters and had to wear fatsuits with prosthetic makeup.
Plot
Mini Mo (Sammi Cheng) is a Hong Kong resident living in Japan. She suffers from depression, low self-esteem and a binge eating disorder – the result which sees her suffers from extreme obesity. A suicide attempt causes her to meet Fatso (Andy Lau), a Hong Kong salesman working in Japan who is also obese.
Mini sticks with Fatso everywhere, and although initially vexed by Mini, Fatso discovers the reason behind her depression. Mini cannot forget her former boyfriend, Kurokawa, who is now a world-famous pianist. Ten years ago, the two had pledged to meet at the foot of Yokohama Marine Tower on the night of their break-up. Mini is fearful of meeting Kurokawa in her present size. Touched by her story and her sweet nature, Fatso promises to whip her back into shape.
After trying desperate means of losing weight (such as swallowing tapeworms and exercising to Dance Dance Revolution), Mini finally sheds pounds. But Fatso finds his funds running low. To earn enough to finance Mini's weight-loss programs, he opens a boxing gig on the streets allowing on-lookers to punch him to vent their pent-up frustrations. He next enrolls Mini on an expensive weight-loss program, which proves to be very successful. Mini regains her former slim and pretty look.
On the night of her reunion with Kurokawa, Fatso drops Mini off at Tokyo Tower and she meets up with former beau under the gazing eyes of the local media. The pair are interviewed by a local network, but Mini notices another broadcast featuring Fatso's street boxing gig. She finally realizes how much Fatso has sacrificed himself for her and is moved to tears. Turning to apologize to Kurokawa, she leaves hastily.
Months later, Mini publishes a bestseller on dieting, and finds a slimmed-down Fatso carrying her book in a park. The two kiss, promising never to leave each other again.
Cast
- Andy Lau as Fatso
- Sammi Cheng as Mini Mo
- Wong Tin-lam as Fatso's fat friend
- Lam Suet as Bun Man
- Rikiya Kurokawa as Kurokawa
- Kenji Sato as Fatso's boxing customer
- Asuka Higuchi as Ms. Kudo
- Wong Mei-fan as Radio DJ
- Po Ming-nam as Cocaine Ken
- Hung Wai-leung as Fatso's fat friend
- Cheung Chi-ping as Fatso's fat friend
- Cheng Kam-cheung as Fatso's fat friend
- Lo Ching-ting
Awards and nominations
| Awards and nominations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ceremony | Category | Recipient | Outcome |
| 21st Hong Kong Film Awards | Best Film | Love on a Diet | Nominated |
| Best Director | Johnnie To, Wai Ka-fai | Nominated | |
| Best Actor | Andy Lau | Nominated | |
| Best Actress | Sammi Cheng | Nominated | |
| Best Screenplay | Wai Ka-fai, Yau Nai-hoi | Nominated | |
| Best Original Film Song | Song: Beautiful for Life (終身美麗)
Composer: Keith Chan Fai-young
|
Won | |
| 38th Golden Horse Awards | Best Actor | Andy Lau | Nominated |
| 7th Golden Bauhinia Awards | Best Actor | Andy Lau | Nominated |
| Best Actress | Sammi Cheng | Nominated | |
Trivia
- Fatso's car is a Mitsubishi Minica Toppo