Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Borderline fun...Just when I though it would be safe to say that there won't be a Kung Fu Mahjong 3, in just a few months into 2006 – it comes in the form of Bet to Basic. However the good news is that it is delivered without Wong Jing and is a huge par better than Kung Fu Mahjong 2, but the bad news is that it is worst than the original. While this isn't exactly part of the Kung Fu Mahjong series, but the premises is immensely similar and the actors involved is the much overused – Yuen Wah. Sure, the presence of beauty chick – Rain Lee, the dumb founded look of Jordan Chan and the comic presence of Eric Kot are all welcoming, but ultimately Bet to Basic is only borderline entertaining and the feeling of constant rehash of previous crap keep gashing back into my head.The movie goes like this: A young mahjong player wants to quit the mahjong championship but his talent has already caught the attention of an evil competitor...Jordan Chan has always been one of the coolest actors around, but recently he has been starring in a string of roles that picture him as somewhat dumb founded. Sure it shows him to be a pretty versatile actor, but these kinds of silly roles will certainly do his award winning chances more harm than good. While it was refreshing to see him act dumb for a first time, but with a few years on it is becoming a cliché. Rain Lee is one heck of an actress, while not processing much talent; she is always a pleasant experience to watch. Sure this is yet another role that she can not show off any potential, but like Stolen Love, it reinforces her beauty in a manner that Neo likes it. While Eric Kot continues to show funny comic timing, Yuen Wah has now become one of the most annoying sidekicks in recent memories.Sometimes it is surprising to witness a movie that offer nothing new or refreshing can still be borderline fun to watch. Bet to Basic, perhaps benefiting from Wong Jing absence, or maybe Neo's obvious bias factor of Rain Lee. Whatever the case is, this movie isn't good and certainly isn't entirely crap, but at its best can only be described as borderline fun. Bet to Basic is certainly a film that is far too basic for its own good and unfortunately even on my personal generous marking; this really isn't a good film…I rate it 6/10www.thehkneo.com