Ten Years (60th BFI London Film Festival Part II)

What I like when I go to a cinema is to pay West End prices and have the projectionist take three attempts to show the correct subtitles on a film. Well done the Price Charles Cinema! It's not the first time I've had failings of the digital age - DJs have had their over-reliance on their MacBooks exposed when they crash, lost with little to do except try and re-boot as soon as possible. While it just takes a moment's patience from the audience, it doesn't put you in the best of moods to start a film.

I, therefore, got three attempts to view the start of the opening short, 'Extras' as part of the five short stories that make up 'Ten Years'.

'Happy Together' by Wong Kar-wai is one of my favourite films, an allegory of two gay men from Hong Kong travelling across Argentina, seemingly exiled from home. A film made just before the UK's hand-over of Hong Kong in 1997, the anxieties of what will become of Hong Kong over the next fifty years have been something looked at in the arts, as well as played out in the real-life streets of the SAR.

'Ten Years' is five shorts set in and around the year 2025, ten years after the film was made: in 2015, Maths fans. Each take a more-than-slightly controversial look at various aspects of life and how they could be changed in the future, as China's influence grows. I'm sure China took kindly to it.

'Extras', the opening tale, is regarding two Triads, chosen to be pawns in a political chess game with public opinion. The National Security chiefs feel that their role will be undermined, with little fear among the populace. Therefore, the two hapless Triads are offered big money to shoot at two politicians, creating public fear, highlighting the need for Security Forces. An inside act of terror, this is one for conspiracy theorists all over. The short itself, however, is fairly simplistic and feels a little amateurish in execution. It's probably best that this one flies by at the start.

 The second is by far the strangest of the quintet, and left me feeling even the actors don't really know what is going on. A couple of 'specimen collectors' go about their 'research' in an abandoned building, but little is really clear as to what exactly they are doing, or why. With parts that remind of György Pálfi's 'Taxidermia' and others 'The Shining', this is a random collection of 'specimens' of scenes, thrown together with little coherent story to speak of.

The first two a bit weak, thankfully the third picks up the pace greatly. A taxi driver struggles with the new policy that all drivers must speak Putonghua instead of Cantonese to be able to pick up certain fares. This leads to comedy moments as he tries to learn pronunciations of words, such as 'David Beckham.' But for the driver that previously had to learn English to get work now struggles with another language being forced upon him, potentially taking his livelihood as a result.

The fourth is probably the most controversial, a mockumentary about someone self-immolating themselves outside the British Consulate. Speaking with various academics and writers on the subject of protest movements, it tells the story of a young student whose imprisonment inspired others, as they try to identify the silent protester. It speaks of many subjects, relevant in light of recent movements in Hong Kong, and how these could tragically develop as the years pass.

The fifth and final story is of a vendor whose son, along with all other children, has to take part in activities on behalf of the government, keeping surveillance on all shops and points of sale. The smallest of things will be noted, with common sense forgotten as the young children blindly follow orders. Picked up for advertising 'local eggs', when the approved 'Hong Kong eggs' should be used, he questions his son as to what it is he is doing in his role, concerned that his son is becoming a brainwashed trooper for the secret police. But soon he learns that his son has been assisting some of the shops he is sent to keep an eye on, showing that independent thought and protest are still alive and well in the future's youth.

These five Orwellian visions of what may become of Hong Kong are varied in quality, but all raise interesting anxieties present among a people as to what the future may hold. Well, maybe not 'Season of the End'. As a UK resident, while different in their circumstances, the situation in Hong Kong reflects the uncertainty that surrounds the UK's political future and what impacts, with various doomsday scenarios playing out in the minds of all concerned, if you're bothered, that is.

It could prove that there is little change afoot, but the human mind cannot cope with uncertainty, and Hong Kong has another thirty years of anxiety ahead of it before anyone's ideas can be founded.
   

Fresh Wave Presents a Hong Kong Young Filmmakers Shorts Programme

Part of the 5^th annual Pan-Asian Film Festival, which seems to have largely passed me by, ‘Fresh Wave’ showcases some of the bets new directing talent in Asia. Taking place in Hong Kong each December, the focus is on short films by emerging talents – so, to some extent, you’re talking student film.

As part of the Pan-Asian Film Festival, four shorts (and some full-length trousers) were shown in London at the ICA, all having performed quite well a few months ago in HK.

To open was ‘The Little One’ by Tam Wai-ching, probably the worst of the bunch, in that it lacks some narrative structure and some blanks seem to require filling. A pair of step-siblings get the horn for each other, much to the anger of their father, who likes a bit of incest himself, forcing the teenagers to vent their frustrations. A bit patchy in places, ‘The Little One’ feels very much like student film, trying to throw-in lots of artsy shots and angles, without really delivering much substance.

Next was ‘Flowers with Aphasia’- which won Li Sum-yiet Best Film in December, and is perhaps my favourite – where a florist is ‘harassed’ daily by a young boy wanting him to make a reef. Irritated by the boy, the florist eventually gives in and gets to work on the boy’s design. Gradually developing a friendship, the florist is left to consider his relationship with his own son and lament what might have been. The simplest film of the quartet, ‘Flowers with Aphasia’ is also the strongest, being that it focuses on a story between two central characters, without straying too far from the point, making it perfectly suited to the short format.

‘On Sleepless Roads, the Sleepless Goes’ by Isabella Candice Lam is probably the most stylishly shot of the four, but again suffers from a few plot holes and fractured storytelling. Like ‘The Little One’, it perhaps needed a bit of a longer format to fully explore the characters and their motivations rather than glossing over them. But still, ‘On Sleepless Roads, the Sleepless Goes’ is a solid enough piece about a man finding himself trapped in a situation, as the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

Winner of the Fresh Wave Best Student Film, ‘Dong’ focuses on Yang Dong, a schoolboy actor coming to terms with the world of women. Pursued by Nuannuan (the ‘warmth’ to his ‘winter’), Dong gradually grows a fancying for her aunt, a woman he can only stare blankly at. As the story progresses and the Beijing performance draws near, Dong is increasingly lost and confused by the world around him. More than just a simple childhood crush, Li Yushang hints that the lonely Dong’s affection for Nuannuan’s aunt is a longing of a different kind.

As with any short film, trying to do too much can leave a fractured and disjointed affair. ‘The Little One’ and ‘On Sleepless Road, the Sleepless Goes’ perhaps try to do too much in a short period of time, needing more depth to the characters to really work. Also, some being student film, there can, at times, be a sense of trying to do too much and not yet fully finding the best way to express ideas. It is no surprise that the simpler, gentler films are the ones that are much stronger and complete.

Lights (Adapted AKA Sein)

New TouYube video about stuff and that. Being that my video of Joe Hisaishi's Kusare Umi Nite got shut down, I decided to re-use the same images from Hong Kong for 'Lights' by some chap named Adapted AKA Sein. It's another one off the old 'Raw Material' album that doesn't really seem to exist that I picked up in Nagoya.

Mad Detective

July was Johnnie To month. This time, however, it is a film I have actually seen before. Viewing it on its UK release, I could confirm that it was indeed worth the few HK$ that I paid for it, but still took approximately 51 weeks to get round to watching it. ‘Mad Detective’ - a co-directing with Wai Ka Fai - is a little different from other Johnnie To works that I have seen; being less about the violence and conflict within power struggles and more around character development.


Bun is a tad…well, mad. Forced out of professional detectiveing, he answers the call of Ho (Andy On), a younger detective out-of-luck in a case involving the disappearance of a police officer 18 months previous, and puts his thinking ear on to aid the detective now in possession of his old police pistol.

But as previously stated: Bun is mad. Claiming to see people’s inner-selves, he will see multiple personalities in individuals to our one, and is ‘aided’ by his wife, who left him many moons ago. It’s not long before Ho realises his mistake and sees why he was kicked-out of the police originally, despite his knack for solving crimes involving suitcases.

Starting off with comedic moments – with multiple personalities visiting the little boys’ room together at once – the film becomes more tense as it progresses towards the climax, as everyone’s inner-self is revealed and the truth uncovered.

Lau Ching Wan does a good job in the lead role, as do the make-up department in making his hair just messy enough to create the illusion of madness and Johnnie To and collaborator Wai Ka Fai shows he can make a film a little different from his norm, with some nice camerawork for an ‘Enter the Dragon’ like ending.

Kitano’s ‘Violent Cop’, To’s ‘Mad Detective’, I am now left to watch William Lustig’s undoubted 1988 classic ‘Maniac Cop’.

Election 2

In ‘Election’, Simon Yam’s Lok was the Nick Clegg-like nice guy in the election race for the position of Wo Shing Society Chairman. By the films’ conclusion, however, he makes a Clegg-like U-turn, showing his ruthless streak in order to gain power. With his term coming to an end, Lok once again starts to show his David Cameron side, seeking to go against Society tradition and serve a second term as Chairman, running against his five god-sons.

Another Hong Kong DVD gone missing, ‘Election 2’ is Johnnie To’s sequel to his multi-award winning, let’s-show-a-lack-of-originality-in-film-reviewing-and-compare-it-to ‘The Godfather’ ‘Election’, with the same power struggle scenario rearing its ugly head once more. This time, it’s the turn of Jimmy (Louis Koo) to play the nice guy forced to show a ruthless side, as he seeks to gain the Chairmanship in order to aid his business plans in mainland China. Up against his four brothers, he is the clear favourite, having both the best hair and tailored suits. But at this, Lok seeks to alter the Society tradition and serve a second term.

The original was a sleek film, showing the race for the baton between two lead candidates, but ‘Election 2’ suffers a little from sequel syndrome, lacking the originality, obviously, of its predecessor and resorting to scenes that feature more shock and gore than true quality. But, that said, ‘Election 2’ is a worthy sequel with some good cinematography and atmosphere. Many of the cast from the original – those whose characters are still alive – are reunited, though many are more as cameos than lead roles. The focus here is much more on Jimmy, with even Johnnie To favourite Simon Lam pushed a little further down the bill in place of his successor. The suspense as to the outcome is, therefore, less apparent than in ‘Election’ and has a sense of inevitability about it.

This won’t win any votes as the best of Johnnie To’s work, but certainly helps his position as one of Hong Kong’s top directors.

PTU

This is another film purchased on DVD while in Hong Kong last summer and that for some reason or other I never got round to watching, which is a shame, because it’s a good little film. ‘PTU’ – or ‘Police Tactical Unit’ (do you want to see my unit?) – follows the plight of Detective Lo, as he searches for his gun; lost to street punks. Enlisting the help of fellow officers, he roams the streets on Tsim Sha Tsui in hope of retrieving it by dawn.

Directed by Johnnie to, this feels like one of those fun films that gets made quickly in between much larger productions, a la ‘Chungking Express’, also set in Hong Kong. The plot is simple enough – though the characters may not always be – and it is easy to dip in and out of without too much thought.

Filmed with wide-angled lenses, with close-up shots, this is classic Hong Kong cinema: capturing the claustrophobic nature of the milieu, with bright lights, dingy streets and an endless array of colourful characters trading blows through the night. Hardly To’s best work, but a further stamp in his place as the John Woo for the new millennium and probably the best director from the SAR over the last decade.

Using regular collaborators, such as Simon Yam and big-and-beautiful Suet Lam, To’s police are a far cry from the hapless characters of Jackie Chan’s 1980s, giving the impression that if one thing is illegal in Hong Kong: it’s smiling. The look and feel are both slick and stylish and cult at the same time, though the music – typically a weak point in Hong Kong films, bar the work of Wong Kar-wai – is, at times, more sixth-form college hopeful with a synthesizer after a two litre bottle of Tizer than professional. But that’s minor, and along with ‘Breaking News’ and ‘Exiled’, ‘PTU’ shows that To is the master of the roaming groups of loners…in Hong Kong and Macau, at least.

Hong Kong Legends

If you crossed Japan with Hong Kong, I would be in living in a world that only Hitchin could compete with…in DVD terms, anyway. However, the fact that each only provides me with one half of perfection means that I am left in a state of tantalising near orgasm.

The good people of Japan, the Japanese, made the correct decision of choosing Region 2 for their DVD format. This means that any DVD I purchase in Japan, as I often do (both times I have been there), I can enjoy in the comfort of my X-Box (original, not 360) and Toshiba 14’’. However, the majority of Japanese DVDs that I want to buy don’t have English subtitles. Makes sense of course, being that it is sold in Japan. It would be like putting Japanese subtitles on a UK-release DVD ‘Two Pints of Lager’…or English subtitles on a UK-DVD release of ‘Two Pints of Lager’…or audio on a UK-release DVD of ‘Two Pints of Lager’.

Conversely, the large foreign populations in Hong Kong means that the vast majority of Hong Kong DVD releases have English subtitles, along with Cantonese and Mandarin. But the bastards are only bloody Region 3, or Region 1 to satisfy those light beer drinkers. This means I will be able to follow the film, but will not be able to watch it on my primitive means, and thus never be able to follow it.

There are only a few options (beyond actually getting to grips with modern technology, buying an all-region DVD player and one of those fancy TVs I’ve heard so much about) open to me: a) learn Japanese (pending); b) actually getting to grips with modern technology, buying an all-region DVD player and one of those fancy TVs I’ve heard so much about (effort); c) start watching things on my computer (I don’t like this option); or d) only buy Japanese DVDs with English subtitles and all-region Hong Kong DVDs (that’s the easy, British option).

So, while in Hong Kong last summer, I bought myself a number of DVDs of films that I had heard of but I’ve never seen or films I had never heard of, nor indeed seen. Being that a lot of them were about £3, it wasn’t too much of a risk to my bank balance, but it did also mean that I wasn’t in a massive hurry to watch them. But, being that it’s a new year, I made it my resolution to watch them all…or at least the ones I’d never heard of before…

people’s HERO (1988)

Bought mainly for one reason: I liked the cover. The other one reason is that it has Tony Leung Chui-Wai in it. Oh, housewife’s choice Tony Leung Chui-Wai. Sex. Though here he is in a much younger and wilder role than his usual smooth, suave and debonair characters. A very simple film, it is about a botched bank robbery that leads to a hostage situation, before everything goes horribly wrong. Films like this go one of two ways, and the direction it takes is down to the cast and crew involved. Luckily here, it is a cast of younger versions of the Hong Kong elite and is handled in an interesting enough manner, to turn it into more than some simple, daytime Channel 5 movie.

Spacked Out (2000)

Got to love a film called ‘Spacked Out’, especially when you read on the back of the DVD case that the four main protagonists are called Cookie, Banana, Bean-Curd and Sissy…So, a film about three food stuffs and a transsexual. Again I liked the cover; a low-budget design catching some mythical point in time, and it is produced by Johnnie To: the John Woo of the new millennium. Essentially, this is your typical youth with no future piece about a group of teenage girls in a far-out part of Hong Kong’s New Territories. On learning that she is pregnant, one of the group starts to question their wild antics, and for once looks to the future. A pretty standard, non-linear series of scenes makes this the Hong Kong answer to many similar films that have been made throughout the world, but is not exactly life changing.

First Love: The Littler on the Breeze (1998)

They really do just make more interesting DVD covers in Hong Kong. Not better ones, just more interesting. This time is was not Johnnie To as producer that led me to the film, but Wong Kar-wai, putting his name to a film directed by Eric Kot. I’m not really sure what’s going on in this film – I’m not sure that I’m meant to. The opening sequence is a bizarre collection of shots with a charmingly terrible soundtrack accompanying it. The film is much like this all the way through, similar to Wong Kar-wai’s films ‘Chungking Express’ and ‘Fallen Angels’. The director narrates a ‘making-of’ style side throughout the tales of first love, making this a film that is simply too easy to label as postmodern.

Okinawa Redez-vous (2000)

The great thing about ‘Okinawa Redez-vous’ is that the dialogue is about 50% Cantonese, 33% basic English and 17% basic Japanese. This means that I can understand about 20% of what is said without subtitles. Tony Leung Ka-fai (the non-housewife’s choice one) is a policeman that takes his girlfriend on a trip to Okinawa, where he comes across Hong Kong criminal Leslie Cheung and so plots to arrest him in-between sunning himself and breaking his girlfriend’s heart. This is a pretty standard film for a cast of big names, with the strange characters of a lovesick yakuza boss, an obsessive police desk clerk and a master criminal that’s more concerned by chasing the women than money. It seems they’d all taken a break from slightly more serious roles for this one.

It’s pretty clear to see why all of these films involving some of Hong Kong’s megastars have yet to have any real release in the UK, despite their already large numbers of films that have: all are pretty simple pieces (well, ‘First Love’ would have been simple to make, anyway) and similar English-language films can be found. But each is charming in its own way and overall they were worth every penny of the £12 total I probably paid for them.

Kusare Umi Ni Te

Finally having a computer that works has allowed me to finally have a prper look at my Hong Kong photos and put to some music. Went for Joe Hisaishi's 'Kusare Umi Ni Te' (Into the Polluted Sea).