Crossing Hennessy

Plot

Loy (Jacky Cheung) is a 41-year-old bachelor who lives with his widowed mother (Paw Hee-Ching) and aunt (Chu Mi-Mi) in Wan Chai. Loy's mother, disappointed by his bachelorhood, often sets up match-making lunches for him with various girls. On the other side of Hennessy, orphaned Oi Lin (Tang Wei) lives with and works for her uncle and aunt in a bathroom appliances store on Lockhart Road. She is in a relationship with Xu (Andy On), who is in prison. Her uncle, who disapproves of Xu, sets up a match-making lunch for her and Loy. Neither Loy or Oi Lin are attracted to one another, but the families continue to set up meetings for the two. After a few meetings and dates, the two eventually strike up a friendship after discovering a mutual interest in detective stories.

Both Loy and Oi Lin's families misunderstand the newfound friendship as romance and begin discussing wedding banquet arrangements. Loy explains to his mother this is not the case, and that Oi Lin has a boyfriend. Annoyed, Loy's mother calls Oi Lin's aunt and yells at her, calling her and her husband cheats. Oi Lin becomes upset with Loy, and breaks off their friendship. During this time she shares a flat with her boyfriend Xu, who has just been released from prison, and Loy gets back together with his ex-girlfriend Man Yu (Maggie Cheung Ho-yee).

As time passes, Loy and Oi Lin grow increasingly uneasy about their relationships with Man Yu and Xu respectively. Loy tells Man Yu that he is finally in love with someone, but does not know if he is good enough for her. In the meantime, Oi Lin breaks up with Xu. Furious, Xu tracks down Loy and beats him up. Loy, though severely injured and no match for Xu, claims he is the better man because he can make Oi Lin smile. Xu finally understands, and leaves Oi Lin to get on with her life.

Loy's mother finally marries her accountant at the Cotton Tree Drive Marriage Registry to everyone's delight. After the wedding, Loy goes to the Cha Chaan Teng (where he'd previously had a date with Oi Lin) and finds Oi Lin. He joins her there, and the two enjoy the afternoon together.

Reception

Critics gave generally positive reviews, and Tang Wei in particularly received praise for her work. Perry Lam of Muse Magazine, for example, comments that Tang 'exudes charisma and star appeal, even in jeans and sneakers, but I have no doubt that she could have stretched her role a lot further if the script had allowed her.'

Awards and nominations

47th Golden Horse Awards

17th Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards

30th Hong Kong Film Awards