A young boy who isn’t doing too well in school and life gets help from an alien. A premise that worked wonderfully for Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial works stupendously for Stephen Chow’s CJ7 too.
director Chow’s 2008 film can be rented in the original Chinese from Apple TV+ and is available for free in a Hindi dubbed version on YouTube (with numerous commercial breaks). CJ7 is the kind of kiddie movie with tremendous appeal for grown-ups too. The film has Kung Fu Hustle director Chow’s trademark mesh of slapstick humour and sentimental scenes, but it has something else too: a brilliant child actor.
Xu Jiao made her debut in CJ7, but in the role of a boy. Xu plays nine-year-old Dicky, the bright son of construction worker Ti (Stephen Chow). Ti works hard to ensure that Dicky studies in a posh school, but Dicky finds it hard to adhere to Ti’s exhortations about the values of simplicity and honesty.
Ridiculed for his torn shoes and creased uniform by his wealthier classmates, including the goggles-sporting bully Johnny, Dicky seeks comfort in the kindly teacher Yuen (Zhang Yuqi). A toy that turns out to be an alien dog-like robot transforms Dicky’s standing at his school. CJ7, as Dicky calls the green-coloured squishy creature, develops a telepathic relationship with Dicky, turning out to be a boon as well as a bane for the boy.
Smooth, crisp – it’s only 88 minutes long – and often very funny, CJ7 reinforces Stephen Chow’s flair for Chaplinesque drama. Dicky’s scenes with the alien provide the laughs, while his relationship with his impecunious father tug the heart-strings. While the other kids are hilarious too, the character of an overweight and effeminate boy is too slapstick to fit into the film’s sharply written humour.
The compact and uncomplicated alien is as adorable as Dicky, who is wonderfully brought to life by Xu Jiao. The child actor is unselfconscious and lacking in precocity, carrying out Chow’s heart-warming fantasy with a maturity that belies her age.
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