“Did Feng Xiaogang get lost again?” This question popped into my mind when I saw the trailer for “If You Are The One” (非诚勿扰, Fei Cheng Wu Rao). The 1′36″ video clip looks beautiful, passionate, magnificent, Hollywood style –  and unfortunately, very obscure.

In China, the holiday movie season is called “New Year’s celebrating season” mostly because of Feng Xiaogang’s comedies. With seven “New Year’s celebrating films” including Dream Factory (甲方乙方), and Cell Phone (手机), Feng is renowned for making comedies with Beijing style dialogue, reflections of today’s society, Chinese movie fans’ favorite actor Ge You (葛优), and a lot of fun mixed with tears.

And then, Feng‘s 2006 martial arts film The Banquet (夜宴) and 2007 war drama Assembly (集结号) received some negative reviews from both the audience and critics. People were wondering where Feng’s talent has gone.

I attended the preview screening for “If You Are The One” on Wednesday. Thank Goodness, Feng Xiaogang is back with his iconic sense of humor. Though the primary story is about a heartbreaking romance between Ge You and Taiwan actress Hsu Chi (舒淇), you will burst into laughter with the crowd for the smart lines. The film’s structure looks a little bit Korean, like My Sassy Girlfriend, but the actors’ performance is very Chinese.

Unlike Forever Enthralled (梅兰芳), the studio has done a great job for the English subtitles of “If You Are The One”. There’s no need bringing your Chinese assistant to the cinema this time.

Release date: December 18th, 2008