Recently, I received an e-mail from one of this blog's lurkers asking me, among other things, what the chances are of catching sight of celebrities in Hong Kong. I guess, before anything else, it depends on people's definition of celebrities -- in my case, I'd count character actors and people behind the camera (like film directors, producers, scriptwriters and cinematographers) among them.
If you can recognize them, I'd say that the probability is fairly high -- this not least because Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated parts of the world and many Hong Kong movie people are apt to do things that are regular and normal (yet one might expect their Hollywood equivalents): e.g., take public transport (and I don't just mean taxis either!), shop in malls, eat in the public areas (as opposed to private rooms) of restaurants (and not all of them super-expensive eateries either), attend performing arts events and attend film screenings.
Re that last activity: To be sure, the vast majority of celebrities I've spotted at film screenings have been at movie premieres -- which I have been fortunate to been invited to attend. However, the fact of the matter is that nearly all premiere publicity events I've seen -- like the one for Vincent Chui's Three Narrow Gates yesterday evening which the movie's star, veteran character actor Liu Kai Chi, showed up to help promote -- have been in public space and consequently effectively open to the public.
Also, while I do think it unlikely that you'll find many well known faces in the crowd for regular peak-period screenings at multiplexes, I can vouch for having seen quite a few familiar visages attending such as Hong Kong International Film Festival and other special film programme screenings.
For those fellow fans of Hong Kong cinema who are feeling green with envy though, will hasten to add that celebrity spottings do not occur daily in Hong Kong. At the same time, it's also true enough that it's happened frequently enough that I've stopped keeping the list I thought for a time that it'd be cool to compile and really have lost count of the movie personalities I've had the good fortune to see -- and, in some cases, also speak to -- over here in the Big Lychee... ;)
Getting back to Liu Kai Chi: What a week the man has had! I.e., not only did Three Narrow Gates have its premiere at the Hong Kong Asian Independent Film Festival yesterday but Lawrence Lau (AKA Lawrence Ah Mon)'s Ballistic and Dante Lam's Beast Stalker, two very watchable movies in which he figures pretty prominently, opened this past Thursday! :b
I get the feeling that this is one of those PhotoHunts that is going to yield a diverse bunch of photos.This since metal, like plastic, is one of those constituent ingredients that pretty much is everywhere we look in those parts of the world where humans live, work and play.
For my part, rather than go out and take new photos, I delved once again into my now quite sizable photo archive for this week's contributions. More specifically, here are two photos -- one a close-up; another of it silhouetted against a sunny blue sky -- of the world's largest ferris wheel located in the Tempozan District of Osaka, Japan (that also is home to the wonderful Osaka Aquarium). (And should anyone wonder: of course, I went on it and yes, it was indeed a cool ride!). :b
Does the sight of this make you hungry and want to come flying over to Hong Kong? ;b
Say "Wan Chai" to many people outside of Hong Kong and, especially if they're Westerners, odds are that this'll conjure up The World of Suzie Wong for them. Even among many Hong Kong residents, Wan Chai doesn't have the greatest of reputations. (There's a scene in the set-entirely -in-Wan-Chai Crazy 'n the City where Eason Chan's character tells Joey Yung's that, whereas Central represents "heaven", Wan Chai is "hell".)
This is due in large part to their being a number of 'girly' and other sleazy bars in this district of Hong Kong Island. And I'll readily admit that there are parts of it that I don't particularly like to walk around.
However, not least after having worked for more than a year in the area, I have come to discover that Wan Chai has its charms and attractions. E.g., from a culture vulture viewpoint, it is impossible to ignore the fact that Wan Chai is home to the Hong Kong Arts Centre and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts that is the venue for many performing arts events as well as the alma mater of quite a few movie actors, actresses, etc.
If truth be told, however, what I find myself missing most about Wan Chai now that I no longer work there is the profusion of budget eateries serving some very tasty food at reasonable (by Hong Kong standards) prices. And so much so that I have found myself returning on weekends and even some weekday evenings to dine in the area.
Among the places I have returned to frequent is a modest establishment over on Hennessy Road called Yeung Noodle that, despite its name, actually serves more than one noodle dish. Still, if it only served the one dish I find myself pretty much always ordering when I'm there, I'd definitely be more than satisfied.
More specifically, here's recommending their dry egg noodles with slices of beef, a smattering of spring onions and a generous sprinkling of shrimp roe that comes with a complimentary bowl of hot, tasty soup. Together with a glass of dark chrysanthemum tea, the damage to one's wallet comes to HK$29 (i.e., around US$3.74). Not bad, eh? Except that my one caveat is that I can foresee those with larger appetites than mine needing at least two of those plates rather than being able to settle for just the one like I'm able to! ;)
The past lives on in memories and cultural references
There was a time early on in my 'born-again' Hong Kong movie fan phase when I got to thinking I might never watch a non-Hong Kong movie fan again. Then, just a few years later (and ago), I got to worrying that I was running out of Hong Kong movies to watch...
Still, despite the downturn in film production and the cries about the death of Hong Kong cinema (which have been made for some years now), I've not stopped being a Hong Kong movie fan. Not even after moving to the Fragrant Harbour itself -- a move that, somewhat ironically, does seem to have considerably cooled the cinematic ardor of more than one person I know, including a fair few whose writings had helped me on my way to Hong Kong film fanaticism.
At the same time, as I've mentioned before, it's not like my movie viewing habits have not changed since coming to Hong Kong. Most notably is it being so that I hardly watch any movies (from Hong Kong or elsewhere) on video any more.
So it actually was a bit of a shock for me -- who does watch a lot of non- as well as Hong Kong movies these day -- to realize that, as of today, the six films I've most recently seen all happen to be Hong Kong films. (To be sure, others would be more shocked, I think, by the fact that these six films have been seen in a period of just eight days... and it's true that that is way above average for most people as well as for me usually! ;b)
Since that no longer is that usual a thing, I figured that I'd should commemorate this with a blog post about that sextet of movies. So, without further ado:-
Ballistic (2008) -- The third cinematic offering of the year for suddenly prolific director Lawrence Lau (AKA Lawrence Ah Mon), this set-in-Taiwan crime drama-thriller with strong political themes and overtones will get Hong Kong movie buffs with long memories thinking Island of Greed (1997). In this case, however, the new surely triumphs the old in terms of the quality of the filmmaking and acting (by a cast led by Simon Yam who shows how he knows how to act, not just overact like in Johnnie To's Sparrow). And while it's quite obviously the case that certain concessions had to be made in order to try to make the film more commercially appealing, my sense is that certain scenes and messages still can't help but hit home -- especially for those with a familiarity of Taiwanese (presidential) politics.
My rating for the film (on the brns.com scale): 8 (And this despite watching the film in unusual surroundings which necessitated that the screening be temporarily halted for a few times.)
Citizen King(2008) -- I have to admit to having wanted to watch this film because of it having some cool faces from the past (notably the great Gordon Liu but also the criminally under-used Farini Cheung). But while they really are fine in it, there's no doubt that the two people who caught my eye the most while taking in this dramedy about a frustrated Hong Kong actor who smells a chance to head to Hollywood and decides to go for it for all it's worth are star and co-director Johnson Lee and Brian Burrell. Shot on what must have been a not at all substantial budget, that which might well be described as a darker version of My Name is Fame (2006) still actually turns out to have quite a bit of substance.
My rating for the film: 7.
Magazine Gap Road (2007/8) -- Watching this Nicholas Chin-directed movie about a woman whose past comes back to haunt her at the Hong Kong Asian Independent Film Festival made for an interesting experience. Truth is, despite that its Tuesday screening having been its Hong Kong premiere, I've seen it twice before and also did such as read its script (and -- full disclosure -- wrote its publicity copy). Despite not having been directly involved in its making, I still felt I knew quite a bit of the details surrounding the movie, the choices made regarding particular shots, music, etc. All in all, it made for a viewing experience that was quite memorable and, I can but hope, I will be able to repeat in the future.
No rating for this film (Sorry but I really can't give one for this film!)!
July (2004) -- There are people who think that Hong Kong movies and Hong Kongers are never politically-minded. Well, this Tammy Cheung documentary shows how much of a lie/fallacy those assumptions are. A moving record of the massive July 1, 2003 protest march staged against an anti-subversion bill (aka Article 23), some sections of it feels like history, others a still pertinent contemporary rallying call (even though Cheung's avowed style is to be less directly didactic than most other documentary filmmakers). Above it all, I came away with a sense that there really is a distinct Hong Kong people and that many of them are not going to easily become Chung Kwok Yan any time soon.
My rating for this film: 7.5
Eternal Love (1966) -- Like Hong Kong cinema, the death of Cantonese opera has long been heralded but it seems to continue to have its fans. Back in 1966, an attempt was made to popularise and modernise the traditional art form with a film starring some of the biggest teen stars of the day in Connie Chan Po-Chu and Josephine Siao Fong-Fong. The result was a fascinating romantic work that I found watchable (even if rather puzzling in its ultimate treatment of the stories' 'baddies')... even without English subtitles (like was the case with the version of it that I saw)!
My rating for the film: 7
Princess Chang Ping (1975) -- Before all that slow mo 'heroic bloodshed', two-hand gun-action, Mexican stand-offs and increasingly annoying doves, John Woo actually made a Cantonese opera film that centered on a real life female historical personality. Though made later than Eternal Love, that whose cast is comprised of The Young Phoenix Opera troupe actually is more traditionally styled -- especially with regards to it music and musical cues. And while I've read that it has its critics, it clearly also has its fans as can be seen by it being it being the first film I've ever witnessed getting a hearty round of applause at its Hong Kong Film Archive screening yesterday.
While out hiking in Hong Kong, I've come across some beautiful parts of the territory. One of my favorites is Tai Tam Country Park, a section of Hong Kong Island which feels far removed from the urban jungle, yet actually is close enough for me to get there and back by city bus. In particular, I love the section of the country park where the Tai Tam reservoirs are -- and it is their waters on which one I saw and captured the reflections in this blog post (And if you like what you see in this Photo Hunt entry, do please check out more photos of such over in this earlier blog entry.)
There are people who think that Hong Kong is a cultural desert. To them, I -- who, incidentally, have just returned from watching a wonderful play, The Will To Build, that was staged in English and Cantonese with Chinese and English surtitles -- say: Either you don't know what you're talking about or you must be a truly demanding bunch of culture vultures. For believe you me when I say that I've been to quite a few theatrical works and classical music concerts as well as film festivals, retrospectives, etc. over here in Asia's World City. Additionally, earlier this month one Sunday, there was the free Arts in the Park (Victoria Park over in Causeway Bay, to be exact!):-
For some reason, Gulliver's Travel was the event's theme -- hence a large Gulliver (as well as stage performances) ending up in Victoria Park's Central Lawn
Also on display at the park for a time were giant puppets that later were involved in a parade
Another colorful art piece on temporary exhibit that later was a part of the parade
...ditto what amounted to a movable feast ;b
'Gourmet hats' that people learnt to make at one of the Arts in the Park booths
Is it just me or is that a cone at the base of that item? Next question: is it me or Hong Kongers who seem somewhat food obsessed? :D
Part of the crowd -- comprised of old as well as young, male and female, etc. -- that turned out for the event
A grandmother and grandson enjoying the show together
Glimpses of old and new at the university of and in Hong Kong
As some of my friends among this blog's readers know, I've spent more time at institutions of higher learning than is good for me. So much so that in recent years, I've tried to steer clear of such places for the most part. The past three weeks, however, have seen me thrice on the University of Hong Kong's main campus; once for work purposes but twice voluntarily.
On my most recent visit, it was to attend a classical music concert by violinist Yao Jue, pianist Cheng Wai and the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong at Loke Yew Hall inside the university's main building. While I enjoyed the performances on offer that evening, I have to admit that what has lingered with me from that night more than the music is the fact that the occasion provided me with yet more connections and associations of the kind that makes me continue to feel -- the latest cries and laments of the death of Hong Kong cinema notwithstanding -- that I am living in a cinematically rich space.
For one thing, Loke Yew Hall just happens to be named after the husband of Loke Cheng Kim and father of Loke Wan Tho, the co-founders of what would come to be known as Cathay Organisation, the film company that -- for a time -- was the main rival of the Shaw Brothers and produced cinematic gems aplenty, especially in late 1950s to early 1960s heyday.
For another, as a quick glance around the place will easily confirm, atmospheric Loke Yew Hall also happens to be where scenes of Ang Lee's Lust, Caution was filmed! (Remember, after all, that Tang Wei, Wang Leehom and co's Lust, Caution characters were University of Hong Kong students for a time; this in addition to such as Leon Lai and Hsu Chi's characters in HKU alumnus Mabel Cheung's City of Glass...)
And as if to truly make me feel like I'm living in a giant movie set, on the bus back to my apartment that evening, as we passed by the street that I lived until just a few months, I saw a film crew filming at the convenience store at the corner. Yes, really, just like that... and as such, gives this movie geek still more occasions and reasons to feel that she ought to pinch herself in order to believe that she really is living over here in Hong Kong. ;b
