God of Gamblers, Chow Yun-fat becomes a gambling-addicted father in One More Chance

is the story of a gambling addicted barber, Guanghui (Chow Yun-fat), who takes on the care of his son, Li Yang (Will Or), who has an autism spectrum disorder. Courtesy of Pop Entertainment

God of Gamblers is one of the most iconic images of Hong Kong movie star Chow Yun-fat. Chow in a black tuxedo, his hair swept neatly back in a “slick back” style, dominates the casino with his superhuman skills.

One More Chance, which will be released in theaters on November 1, is a heartwarming comedy based on a variation of Chow Yun-fat’s character in God of Gamblers. The original title of the film literally translates into “Don’t call me god of gamblers,” and in the film, Chow plays the role of Wu Guanghui, not the dashing god of gamblers, but a hairdresser struggling with gambling debt.

Guanghui is a gambling addict. He often abandons his hair salon to go gambling. He claims to have been a master gambler, but he no longer has any skills to show. He is deep in debt and is threatened by loan sharks. One day, a former girlfriend, Li Xi (Anita Yuen) pays him a visit with Li Yang (Will Or), their autistic son. Li Xi offers to pay big money if Guanghui looks after Li Yang for a month, and he accepts the offer.

Of course, Guanghui, who is addicted to gambling, is not likely to be a good father. He gives the boy a variety of instant noodles saying, “There’s everything, Korean, Chinese and Japanese, so you can choose,” and heads to the casino. He has no knowledge of autism, which causes conflict with Li Yang. But the longer the two are together, the closer they get and the more indispensable they become to each other.

Several crucial characters, typical of Hong Kong comedies, appear in the film, but One More Chance is very much Chow Yun-fat’s movie. After a long hiatus since 2018, Chow comfortably played a somewhat casual and compassionate character in the film. Audiences who enjoyed the God of Gamblers series will probably find it refreshing to see a long-haired and jeans-clad Guanghui coming in and out of gambling establishments.

The image of Guanghui running a marathon with Li Yang overlaps with the real-life Chow Yun-fat, who said he would live his second life as a marathon runner, touching the hearts of the audience. Stars from the past, such as Anita Yuen, who plays Li Xi, also ignites nostalgia for past Hong Kong movies.

One More Chance is the first film that Anthony Pun Yiu-ming directed solo. Pun won the Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Cinematography for his work in The Silent War, starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai. One More Chance is recommended for viewers ages twelve and up and has a running time of 115 minutes.