From the genius casting of the irreverent Chow as the Monkey King to the masterstroke of letting Buddhist monk Tang Xuanzang burst into The Platters' Only You, Lau's wildly imaginative Journey to the West adaptation is deservedly recognized for its sublime wackiness. Yet beneath all the time-travelling and supernatural slapstick of this postmodern two-parter is a traditional love story so cheesy it's actually romantic. Also featuring the now-customary Wong Kar-wai spoofs.
玩世不恭的周星馳就是孫悟空的最佳人選，而唐玄奘突然唱起五黑寶合唱團的《Only You》簡直是神來之筆。這部后現代主義風格電影分為上下兩集。劉鎮偉對《西游記》的改編天馬行空，荒誕至極。但片中包裹在時空穿梭以及超現實的搞笑情節之下的，是一段瀟灑、唯美的傳統愛情故事。影片中也有現在為人們熟悉的王家衛式的嘲諷。