One of the better offerings in the wacky genre of kung fu action films from China, Tricky Brains stars Stephen Chow as master trickster Jing Koo. This 1991 effort showcases his talent for slapstick and his skill in martial arts. The film also delivers a rather sweet story as well. That is not to say it is subtle by any means. Loaded with obvious humor and lots of comic book gags, it also has the complexity to engage an audience broader than kung fu fans alone. Chow has been called a Chinese Jim Carrey and with more than fifty films to his credit, perhaps Carrey is the American Stephen Chow. Here, there is a hint of his most recent Kung-Fu Soccer in which Chow and the genre have ripened into a much more mature film experience. In Tricky Brains, he delivers a non-stop action performance as a hired impostor, out to sabotage the career and romance of the rival of his employer. Posing as the long lost brother of his rival, Chow gets out his bag of tricks, kung fu and otherwise. Punctuated with much coarse humor, high jinks, and fancy footwork, the film is entertaining and fun. The slams at American culture add zing.

Tricky Brains is more sophisticated and watchable than Flirting Scholar; where despite the presence of the beautiful Gong Li, too much of the humor falls one dimensionally flat. She is little more than window dressing as the love object of Chow's Tang Pak Foo, romantic poet and bawdy wanderer with his band of cohorts. He poses as a starving peasant, begging for a humble position in the household of Madam Pei-pei Cheng, (the diabolical Jade Fox in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) where Chen Heung (Gong Li) is a handmaiden. The obstacles to his success are Madam's two doltish sons, for whom Madam has plans involving Chen, and the vilified reputation of Pak Foo's actual identity. Lots of foaming at the mouth, stage bleeding and crotch humor, in addition to the fanciful martial arts moves. In spite of obvious shortcomings, some very funny bits and extremely energetic performances from all elevate the limited screenplay.