Sausalito

Before truly committing himself to direct a Hollywood film, Lau did a test run with Sausalito. Rather than go full in, he imported some Hong Kong actors and used them in an American setting. It wasn't a big success, sadly it didn't really improve his following USA project either. Sausalito would've been twice as good if he'd just shot it in Hong Kong.

Ella and Mike run into each other in a place where singles mingle. Mike is a slick businessman, Ella is a divorced mother. After a short romantic adventure, Mike falls for Ella's charms. Ella is hesitant as she doesn't really trust Mike, but he insists, as he is unable to forget about their time together. Mike keeps pushing until she finally caves.

Maggie Cheung and Leon Lai are solid actors, but to see them struggle and suffer through their English dialogues is rather painful. It doesn't help the romance, neither does the generic setup, the bland score, or the predictable outcome. Sausalito feels like one of Lau's learn-as-you-go experiments, so unless you're a big fan of his work (or the lead actors), approach with caution.