Excellent but underrated film

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Blistering performances.

Imaginative action sequences (particularly the clash of two robots, and one involving a flying motorcycle), impressive special effects (mostly just good old-fashioned mechanical stuff), and Sally Yeh's incredible beauty and solid acting make up for a less-than-engaging story in this bizarre Hong Kong action-fantasy-comedy, which I would recommend mostly to experienced HK viewers, and maybe comic book fans. The first 40 minutes or so are kind of hard to sit through, but then some of the jokes start working, the action becomes more frequent, and Sally Yeh begins to play a bigger part in the movie. Actually, she plays TWO parts: a vicious villainess, and a robot that's made by the bad guys to look just like her and eventually gets re-programmed by the good guys to help them out. It also starts developing human emotions, and it's to Sally Yeh's credit that, using only a few expressions, she manages to give this robot a human soul and make you care about her. And did I mention she is just incredibly, pause-the-DVD-to-admire-her-face beautiful? (**1/2)

(SPOILERS!!!!)Man,this film have great action and superb special effects!! Hong Kong rules in actions movies! The dubbed version is ridiculous, and the characters are dumb, one of them is whisky(Tsui Hark), a dumb-ass drunk its look like a junkie retard! I like this film, have plenty of action and a stupid humor, and great special effects (special the giant Robot)...The characters are constantly repeating "I love Maria"!!! Which make this movie even more dumb than the original Chinese version. What a hell kind of Robot is named "Maria"!

Martial arts action with robots. It's like a live action anime from Hong Kong. Strong plot, strong story, cool robots.ON A SCALE OF 1-10 (10 BEING BEST)I GIVE "I LOVE MARIA"9 1/2 STARSON THE POSITIVE SIDE (+ SIDE)1) COOL STORY (It never wavered)2) COOL ROBOTS (Perfect designed)3) LIKEABLE HUMAN CHARACTERS (The lead characters are very funny and likeable)ON THE NEGATIVE SIDE (- SIDE)1) NO DUBBED VERSION (It only has subtitles and that gets in the way of watching the story)

A sci-fi action film and gag filled comedy is about an improbable love triangle between washed out gangster Whiskey, put upon police scientist Curly, and a robot named Maria. The Hero gang has been terrorizing Hong Kong at will with their giant robot, Pioneer One. Bumbling reporter Ching attempts to track down the story, only to have his efforts thwarted at every turn by the police. Meanwhile Whiskey and Curly fall under suspicion from both their employers when they befriend each other during a bar fight. They flee, only to be hunted down by the Hero Gang's latest robot, Pioneer Two. Modeled after the gang's beautiful second in command, Maria (and intentionally resembling the Maria robot from Metropolis)the robot becomes damaged during it's pursuit. Curly rebuilds her to aid him and his friends to clear their names, and spends the rest of the film battling Whiskey for her affections. (In order to issue her a command one must begin with "I love Curly", much to Whiskeys annoyance.) This fun film epitomizes the "can do" attitude of 1980's Hong Kong film making. The special effects may seem clumsy, but the earnest effort and shear joy of film making shows through. The eventual triumph of the three friends (four if you count Maria) should put a smile on anyone who's ever felt like an outcast.