Aug 23, 2012
SFFILM
The San Francisco Film Society in association with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, San Francisco presents the second annual Hong Kong Cinema festival, September 21-23 at New People Cinema (1746 Post Street). This exciting series highlights one of the world’s major filmmaking hubs and features recent films showcasing Hong Kong’s range of cinematic storytelling with works by both internationally known filmmakers as well as up-and-coming talents. This year’s program also includes a three-film retrospective to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
“As a follow-up to the great success of the inaugural Hong Kong Cinema, this year we present a festival that not only highlights exciting new productions, but also, in marking the 15th Anniversary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, calls attention to the rich cinematic tradition and recent history of this dynamic filmmaking center,” said SFFS Director of Programming Rachel Rosen. “We’re pleased to continue our partnership with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, which has worked with the Film Society for over a decade.”
“Hong Kong has more than a century’s history in filmmaking and has one of the largest and most dynamic film entertainment industries in the world,” said Jeff Leung, Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, San Francisco. “Over the years, Hong Kong films have gained considerable worldwide acclaim and we are excited to present Hong Kong Cinema to the Bay Area audiences this September.”
Hong Kong films are widely known and loved for their deft use of genre in all forms, and the second edition of Hong Kong Cinema delivers the highest quality new work for a variety of tastes. Kicking off the series in proper fashion is the Opening Night film Love in the Buff, the not-quite-a-sequel to the smash hit Love in a Puff (SFIFF 2011) which reunites the two protagonists and the entire filmmaking team for a whole new exploration of romantic entanglements. Other highlights feature the popular and prolific Simon Lam showing off his acting chops in the crime thriller Nightfall, while Ann Hui, whose sold-out screenings of All About Love charmed audiences at HKC 2011, brings us the drama A Simple Life starring superstar Andy Lau.
In addition to the six new films featured in this year’s series, the retrospective to commemorate the 15th Anniversary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region offers a trio of earlier works representing the vast thematic range of cinematic product in Hong Kong during this period: Peter Chan’s rarely-shown romantic drama Comrades, Almost a Love Story (1996), Patrick Yau’s gangland thriller The Longest Nite (1998) and Fruit Chan’s innovative indie hit Made in Hong Kong (1997).
For complete program information visit sffs.org/cinema.
Friday, September 21
4:30 pm Love Me Not North American Premiere
Writer-director Gilitte Pik Chi Leung expected in person
Gilitte Pik Chi Leung (Hong Kong 2012)
A sweet and daring portrait of blurred sexuality and love complications, this independent feature tells the story of Dennis and Aggie, pals since primary school and roommates for five years. Both are gay, but inseparable as friends. Matters become tense, however, when Dennis announces an arranged marriage and Aggie finds herself increasingly jealous. Debuting writer-director Gilitte Pik Chi Leung offers a bustling Hong Kong of reasonably successful, metrosexual youngsters whose views of life and love are very different from those of their parents. Stylistically innovative and bursting with energy, Love Me Not announces an exciting new talent on the scene. Written by Gilitte Pik Chi Leung. Photographed by Gilitte Pik Chi Leung, Evangelo Costadimas. With Afa Lee, Kenneth Cheng, Rebecca Yip, Siu Wu. 92 min. In Cantonese with subtitles. Distributed by Colored Production Company.
5:30 pm Opening Night reception with delicious hors d’oeuvres and wine at Superfrog Gallery at New People.
7:00 pm Love in the Buff OPENING NIGHT FILM
Pang Ho-cheung (Chun giu yu chi ming, Hong Kong/China 2012)
Cherie and Jimmy, the mismatched lovers from Love in a Puff (SFIFF 2011), reunite in the latest immaculately crafted romantic drama from Pang Ho-cheung. Here the two are living together in Hong Kong, but Jimmy’s inconsiderate behavior has driven Cherie to move out; his relocation to Beijing creates a further wedge. When she is also transferred there for her job, they can’t help but reconnect in spite of new romantic interests for them both. With the infectious chemistry of Shawn Yue and Miriam Yeung as Jimmy and Cherie, the film poignantly demonstrates the vagaries of love in the modern world. Written by Pang Ho-cheung, Luk Yee Sum. Photographed by Jason Kwan. With Miriam Yeung, Shawn Yue, Mini Yang, Xu Zheng. 111 min. In Cantonese and Mandarin with subtitles. Distributed by China Lion Film Distribution.
9:45 pm Nightfall
Roy Chow Hin Yeung (Dai jui bo, Hong Kong 2012)
In this grisly thriller, police inspector George Lam (the formidable Simon Yam) investigates the mystery surrounding the murder of popular opera singer Han, and alights on recently released convict Eugene Wong (Nick Cheung) as his prime suspect. As Lam delves further into the crime, uncovering details from the past that tie Eugene to Han’s family, the case increases in complexity and potential danger. With a memorable fight sequence set aboard a cable car and the clever teaming of Cheung and Yam on opposite sides of the law, this is a perfect example of the wonderfully complex, action film for which Hong Kong cinema is known. Written by Christine To Chi-long. Photographed by Ardy Lam. With Nick Cheung, Simon Yam, Janice Man, Shawn Dou. 107 min. In Cantonese with subtitles. Distributed by Well Go USA.
Saturday, September 22
1:30 pm Made in Hong Kong
Fruit Chan (Xiang gang zhi zao, Hong Kong 1997)
Produced by Andy Lau, Made in Hong Kong created quite a stir when it first hit the international film scene in 1997, establishing director Fruit Chan as a representative Asian filmmaker. Low-level gangster Autumn Moon (Sam Lee) is one step short of a triad, and an ocean removed from respectability. Marginalized by society, he nonetheless attempts to make his mark on the world, finding direction in his connections to two young women. Moon’s quest for personal significance is full of startling violence, lyrical emotion and surprising irony, and Chan’s camera is right there, infusing this street-level Hong Kong tale with a vibrant and affecting immediacy. Written by Fruit Chan. Photographed by O Sing-pui, Lam Wah-chuen. With Sam Lee, Neiky Yim Hui-chi, Wenders Li. 98 min. In Cantonese with subtitles. Distributed by Focus Films.
3:45 pm Comrades, Almost a Love Story
Peter Chan (Tian mi mi, Hong Kong 1996)
This beloved Hong Kong film is the sweet romance of two mainland immigrants who meet in the bustling metropolis as they each pursue their dream of something better. Qiao (Maggie Cheung) is an ambitious girl with an eye on her McDonald’s paycheck. Jun (pop star Leon Lai) is a restaurant delivery boy, saving for his wedding to a girl back home. They’re obviously meant for each other but each, for the time being at least, has other ideas. Director Peter Chan and writer Ivy Ho have crafted a charming, elegant film about what life can offer those open to its bright possibility. Written by Ivy Ho. Photographed by Jingle Ma. With Leon Lai, Maggie Cheung, Eric Tsang. 116 min. In Cantonese and Mandarin with subtitles. Distributed by Warner Bros.
6:15 pm The Great Magician
Derek Yee (Da mo shu shi, Hong Kong/China 2011)
Set in 1920s China, this deliriously entertaining film deftly blends vaudeville-style humor, vivid magic sequences and ruthless political gamesmanship. Village warlord Bully Lei (Ching Wan Lau) is accused of using mentalism to recruit soldiers to his cause. New arrival Zhang (superstar Tony Leung), upset to find out Lei is holding a former flame of his captive, aims to thwart these plans with an ambitious kidnap scheme and various tricks of his own. When the plan goes awry, the two match wits in an ongoing battle to see who is the more adept illusionist. Written by Derek Yee, Chun Tin-nam, Lau Ho-leung. Photographed by Nobuyasu Kita. With Tony Leung, Ching Wan Lau, Zhou Xun, Wu Gang. 128 min. In Cantonese and Mandarin with subtitles. Distributed by Emperor Motion Pictures.
9:00 pm Love Me Not see 9/21 Writer-director Gilitte Pik Chi Leung expected in person
Sunday, September 23
1:30 pm A Simple Life
Ann Hui (Tao jie, Hong Kong/China 2011)
Director Ann Hui (All About Love, HKC 2011) is an expert image-maker of daily life. In her latest, which won five of the top Hong Kong Film Awards, she depicts the relationship between a film producer named Roger (Andy Lau) and the aging household servant Ah Tao who has looked after four generations of his family. Though it focuses predominantly on these two protagonists and the shifting balance of caretaking they undergo together as Ah Tao’s health worsens, A Simple Life also offers an expansive and humanitarian look at the range of elderly people in Hong Kong, many of whom have been abandoned by relatives who are overseas. Written by Susan Chan, Roger Lee. Photographed by Yu Lik Wai. With Andy Lau, Deanie Ip, Qin Hailu, Wang Fuli. 117 min. In Cantonese with subtitles. Distributed by China Lion Film Distribution.
4:00 pm Love in the Buff see 9/21
6:30 pm Romancing in Thin Air
Johnnie To (Gao hai ba zhi lian II, Hong Kong/China 2011)
Johnnie To shifts once again from action terrain to romantic drama in this story of famous actor Michael Yuan (superstar Louis Koo) who escapes to a remote mountain lodge to lay low after being jilted at the altar. Looked after by the lodge’s owner Sue and her star-struck helpers Teeny and Beauty, he starts assisting with simple tasks around the hotel-until his manager and the Hong Kong film industry find him and come calling. As the story develops, tensions of Michael’s life as a movie star and Sue’s own history involving a missing husband conflict with their growing attachment for one another. Written by Wai Ka-fai, Yau Nai-hoi, Ryker Chan, Jevons Au. Photographed by Cheng Siu-keung. With Louis Koo, Sammi Cheng, Li Guangjie, Gao Yuanyuan. 114 min. In Cantonese and Mandarin with subtitles. Distributed by Media Asia.
8:45 pm The Longest Nite
Patrick Yau (Am faa, Hong Kong 1998)
Made in 1998, Patrick Yau’s bleak and intricate thriller, set on the Portuguese gambling island of Macau, portrays two rival gangs attempting to negotiate a truce before a legendary boss from another gang arrives. The process is thrown into disarray when an assassination plot is uncovered implicating one of the groups against the other. With a noirish patina reflecting the shadowy world of its setting and featuring The Great Magician‘s Tony Leung as a dirty cop who has his own hidden agenda, Yau’s violent and atmospheric film conjures up a lawless world of corruption and nihilism. Written by Szeto Kam Yuen, Yau Nai Hoi. Photographed by Ko Chiu Lam. With Tony Leung, Ching Wan Lau, Maggie Siu. 81 min. In Cantonese with subtitles. Distributed by Universe Films Distribution.
Film tickets $11 for SFFS members, $13 general, $12 seniors, students and persons with disabilities; Opening Night film and party $20 for SFFS members, $25 general; Film Society CineVoucher 10-Packs $105 for SFFS members, $125 general. Box office opens August 23 for members and August 25 for the general public online at sffs.org.
Hong Kong Cinema is sponsored by Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, San Francisco and media partners San Francisco Bay Guardian and San Francisco Examiner.
For screeners and interviews contact bproctor@sffs.org.
For photos and press materials visit: sffs.org/pressdownloads.