John Woo's melodramatic tragicomedy The Time You Need a Friend (1985) stands at the crucial crossroads in the director's career. Woo had been churning out innocuous comedies for more than a few years, and after establishing the "heroic bloodshed" genre, he'd never look back. But this tale of two comedians - estranged former pals who bury the hatchet for one last show together - blends the pathos and male-bonding of Woo's later dramas with the silliness and pratfalls that marked his early works. At their peak, Ku Ren and Shem Bien were an unstoppable screen comedy team, the undisputed stars of the silent era. But a major falling out has kept the duo offstage for decades. Despite the urgings of family and friends, Ku and Shem refuse to reconcile. As both men approach their twilight years, one last chance for a reunion presents itself in the form of a televised charity benefit. Ku Ren and Shem Bien struggle to come to terms with years of bitterness, and bring the house down once again.

A boy's disappointing scores on the college entrance exam bring shame down on his family.

A mix of supernatural tone, comedic banter and nudity with musical numbers, it takes a while before this story of two scholars being courted and haunted by both, fox spirits and malicious ghosts, gets started. Do the scholars side with the fox spirits, trying to achieve immortality or are they being bewitched by it? It leads to a wild ending with a battle between humans, fox spirits and ghosts that seems more like a Halloween costume showcase than anything else.