A police officer tracks down a murderous criminal gang with the help of the ghost of his former partner, who was shot by the same group.
“Where’s Officer Tuba?” has a long set-up phase. It’s not an overly complicated set-up, just an inordinately long one. In short, Officer Tuba (Sammo Hung), who plays tuba in the police force’s band, is tricked into helping Officer Chow (David Chiang) with a case. When Chow is murdered, Tuba vows to avenge his death. The only problem is that the timid officer makes this promise merely to appease the dying Chow and has no intention of following through. Chow’s ghost then returns to haunt Tuba.
Despite its grim premise, directors Phillip Chan and Ricky Lau deliver an action-comedy with a supernatural twist. Unfortunately, I found the film to be light on both action and laughs. After Chow’s ghost causes Tuba’s reassignment from the band to active duty, he is paired with overeager rookie Officer Cheung (Jacky Cheung). The duo makes a likable pair of goofballs, but their comedic timing and fighting chops are used tepidly. I wouldn’t blame the film’s ineffectiveness on either performer. A couple of standout sequences stand out; you just have to sit through a bunch of filler to get to them.
By the end, I found myself more than a little bored. This film has a promising storyline but fails to embrace the outlandishness I expected. Although the characters are likable, the film spends too much time finding its feet and never quite builds momentum. Having recently watched and thoroughly enjoyed Lau’s “Mr. Vampire,” I found this a misfire.
“Where’s Officer Tuba?” arrives on Blu-ray™ from a new 2K remaster of the original camera negative thanks to 88 Films. While the picture quality is excellent, I found the sound to be a little uneven. Presented in Cantonese mono with English subtitles, the film features dialogue that often sounds strained, even as the audio effects and score remain clear. It’s a noticeable deficiency, though one I might not have dwelled on as much had I been more engaged by the movie.
Supplemental features include an audio commentary by Frank Djeng and F.J. DeSanto, English opening and closing credits, original Cantonese trailer, and an image gallery. The limited-edition disc arrives in a sturdy slipcase featuring art by Sean Longmore and a double-sided fold-out poster.
Although “Where’s Officer Tuba?” wasn’t to my liking, 88 Films’ disc presents it well on Blu-ray™. Fans of Sammo Hung and Hong Kong supernatural cinema may find more to enjoy here than I did.
Now available on Blu-ray™ from 88 FILMS
