''Don't Go Breaking My Heart 2'' is a 2014

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typic ...

film directed by

Johnnie To Johnnie To Kei-fung (born 22 April 1955) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter and film producer. Popular in his native Hong Kong, To has also found acclaim overseas. Intensely prolific, To has made films in a variety of genres, though in ...

. A sequel to the 2011 film ''

Don't Go Breaking My Heart "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" is a 1976 duet by English musician Elton John and English singer Kiki Dee. It was written by John with Bernie Taupin under the pseudonyms "Ann Orson" and "Carte Blanche", respectively, and intended as an affectiona ...

'', it stars returning cast members

Louis Koo Louis Koo Tin-lok ( zh, t=古天樂; born 21 October 1970) is a Hong Kong people, Hong Kong actor, singer and film producer. He began his professional career as an actor in local television series, winning TVB's Best Actor award in 1999 and 2001 ...

, Gao Yuanyuan and

Daniel Wu Daniel Ng Neh-Tsu (, born September 30, 1974) is an American actor, director and producer based in Hong Kong. He is known as a "flexible and distinctive" leading actor in the Chinese language film industry. Since his film debut in 1998, he has ...

alongside new cast members

Vic Chou Vic Chou () is a Taiwanese actor and singer. He is a member of the Taiwanese boy band F4. Career F4 Chou rose to fame for his role as Hua Ze Lei in the highly popular Taiwan television series '' Meteor Garden''. At the conclusion of the series ...

and

Miriam Yeung Miriam Yeung (born 3 February 1974) is a Hong Kong actress and Cantopop diva. As of 2020, she has released more than 35 albums and has starred in more than 40 films. In 2012, Yeung won the Award for Best Actress at the 32nd Hong Kong Film Awards ...

. It was screened at the Special Presentations section at the

2014 Toronto International Film Festival The 39th annual Toronto International Film Festival, the 39th event in the Toronto International Film Festival series, was held in Canada from 4–14 September 2014. David Dobkin's film '' The Judge'', starring Robert Downey Jr. and Robert D ...

. It was released in China on 11 November and in Hong Kong on 13 November 2014.

Cast

as Sean Cheung *

as Yang Yang Yang * Gao Yuanyuan as Cheng Zixin *

as Paul Cheng *

as Fang Qihong *

Lam Suet Lam Suet (; born 1964), or Lin Xue, is a Hong Kong film actor. Life and career Lam was born in Tianjin, and came to Hong Kong as a youth in 1979 to receive inheritance money left by his grandfather. Soon after, all the money had been squander ...

as John * Lo Hoi-pang as Security guard * Liu Yuhong as Zixin's grandmother * Yan Jingyao as Zixin's mother * Wang Zhihua as Qihong's father * Du Yachun as Qihong's mother

Production

''Don't Go Breaking My Heart 2'' was written by

Wai Ka-fai Wai Ka-Fai (born 21 September 1962) is a Hong Kong screenwriter, producer, film director, and former TV screenwriter and producer. Wai is best known for his frequent collaborations with Johnnie To, another former TV turned film director and pr ...

and Ryker Chan and Yu Xi. Yu Xi had previously joined To’s on his films ''Blind Detective'' and ''Drug War'' as a screenwriter.

Release

''Don't Go Breaking My Heart 2'' was shown at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...

on 9 September 2014. The film was released on 11 November 2014 in China, which is

Singles Day The Singles' Day () or Double 11 (), originally called Bachelors' Day, is a Chinese unofficial holiday and shopping season that celebrates people who are not in a relationship. The date, 11 November (11/11), was chosen because the numeral 1 res ...

. The film earned RMB42.1 million (US$6.88 million) from approximately 1.32 million admissions on 11 November making it the best opening gross for a film directed by Johnnie To in Mainland China.

Reception

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'' gave the film a negative review, stating that the "Chinese dreams of love, wealth and sex make this rom-com reboot look very much like a calculated piggy-bank stuffer." ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yo ...

'' gave the film a negative review, calling it "the worst film To has made since founding his independent studio Milkyway." Slant opined that "this sequel jumbles the stakes and loses its drive, not least because, while Shen-ren still pines for Zixin, Qihong toils away on the mainland completely divorced from the story." ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' gave the film a mixed review, comparing the film to the first, stating that "much like the first time, the results are as cheerfully silly as they are compulsively watchable, despite the somewhat disappointing decision to keep one of the series’ most appealing stars (Daniel Wu) sidelined on the mainland for much of the running time." and that director Johnnie To " undisputed master of the modern Hong Kong gangster drama, turns his attention to lighter fare (like this, or 2012’s sudser "''

Romancing in Thin Air ''Romancing in Thin Air'' (; "High-Altitude Romance II") is a 2012 Hong Kong-Chinese contemporary romantic drama film directed by Johnnie To, and starring Louis Koo and Sammi Cheng. Plot While onstage to receive an acting award, Hong Kong scree ...

''"), it’s like watching a great baseball pitcher warming up in the bullpen: perfect form and follow-through minus any real sizzle."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Don't Go Breaking My Heart 2 2014 films 2014 romantic comedy films Chinese romantic comedy films Hong Kong romantic comedy films 2010s Cantonese-language films 2010s Mandarin-language films Films directed by Johnnie To Media Asia films Milkyway Image films Hong Kong sequel films Chinese sequel films Films with screenplays by Wai Ka-fai 2010s Hong Kong films