King of Comedy 1999

In this black comedy, an ambitious but perpetually underpaid actor struggles to rise above the rank of a movie extra. Wan Tin-sau, the head of his village’s community centre, runs acting classes and hosts local plays, while secretly moonlighting on film sets and taking his dream of stardom far more seriously than the roles he actually lands.

One day, a group of club girls asks him to help them act as innocent schoolgirls to earn more money. Among them, Lau Piu-piu, initially skeptical of advice from an unsuccessful actor, grows into a better actress through Wan’s instruction and eventually falls in love with him.

When the two finally share a moment, Wan searches his home for enough money to pay Piu-piu for her “services,” convinced she slept with him for money. After she leaves in anger, he returns to the film studio and lands a part as a leading actor beside a legendary actress, Sister Cuckoo. During this period, Wan reconciles with Piu-piu and pledges to support her for the rest of his life.

Just as Wan is poised to settle into life as a movie star, his part is handed back to a highly sought-after male lead. He regains his confidence with help from the misanthropic lunchman at the studio, who is secretly a C.I.B. agent. Wan is drawn into an undercover operation, disguised as a delivery boy and tasked with delivering a hidden gun and listening device inside take-out food. Although the ruse is exposed and the C.I.B. undercover agent is shot, Wan grabs the gun and saves the day, while the lunchman is rushed to the hospital and survives his wounds.

After a somewhat successful sting, Wan finally becomes famous through a performance of the Thunder Storm, with Piu-piu, Sister Cuckoo, and his aspiring Triad students in the cast. The finale doubles as a blatant marketing plug for Pringles potato chips: the entire troupe stands backstage, stuffing their mouths with Pringles as the logos on the cans face the camera. At one point, Wan and a Triad student argue over who should play Bruce Lee’s character, and another actor yells, > don’t fight, eat chips! The closing credits even feature a quick Pringles advertisement.