[Recommendation] 5 Hong Kong Movies for the Isolation Period

Last time: 5 Japanese Movies for the Isolation Period
Is the coronavirus situation getting you down? Do you find it difficult to spend days within the confines of your household? Try to pass the time with some Asian movies! On this blog, throughout this week, I’m going to provide my personal movie recommendation for the isolation period. So, gently sit back, and let’s go through the 5 Hong Kong productions that can ease your stay at home:

5. Police Story (1985)

 

     Synopsis: Police Inspector Chan Ka-kui (Jackie Chan) participates in an undercover operation led by the Royal Hong Kong Police and the aim of which is to arrest the drug lord Chu Tao (Chor Yuen). All of a sudden, the shootout begins and Ka-kui finds himself in pursuit of fleeing Chu Tao. The inspector manages to capture and arrest the criminal, but this is not enough. Ka-kui’s superiors plan to use Chu Tao’s secretary, Selina (Brigitte Lin) as a key witness in the upcoming trial. Eventually, Chu Tao is released on bail, yet he intends to have his revenge on Ka-Kui. As a result, the inspector is framed for murder. In order to clear his name, Ka-Kui cooperates with Selina and his girlfriend May (Maggie Cheung) in order to retrieve incriminating data on Chu Tao.

     Opinion: Get on that double-decker bus and let Jackie Chan show you how good old action set pieces were made back in the non-CGI days. Police Story is a classic cop movie that spawned 3 sequels, 1 spin-off, and 2 remakes; nevertheless, the original still has not aged a bit.

4. Kung Fu Hustle (2004)

     Synopsis: Shanghai, the 1930s. The city is ruled by mobster groups, the most powerful of which is the Axe Gang, led by Brother Sum (Danny Chan Kwok-kwan). Only in the poorest districts, where the mobsters have no influence, can ordinary people live peacefully. Sing (Stephen Chow) and Bone (Lam Chi-ling) are a pair of stooges who desperately want to make a name for themselves and join the Axe Gang. By a series of unfortunate events, Sing makes the Axe Gang declare a war on the inhabitants of the Pig Sty Alley, an apartment compound managed by the Landlady (Yuen Qiu) and the Landlord (Yuen Wah). When the gangsters are chased away by three retired kung fu masters, Brother Sum hires more and more sophisticated assassins so as to annihilate the Pig Sty Alley. In the meantime, Sing realises that he does not want to harm anyone. In the fight with the Beast (Bruce Leung Siu-lung), the greatest kung fu master, Sing’s chi flow is fixed and he can now fully use the Buddhist Palm style in order to save the day.

     Opinion: Kung Fu Hustle is such a well made comedy! Apart from standard Stephen Chow’s comic style (an idiot trying to talk his way out of heated situations), we get tons of references to other films (Matrix, Spiderman, The Blues Brothers, The Untouchables, The Shining, you name it), over-the-top CGI fights done in Looney Tunes fashion, and hilarious supporting characters. If you have a free afternoon and are looking for a decent comedy, then Kung Fu Hustle is the best choice. This movie is so great that even when you’re down, it will definitely uplift your spirits

3. Bullet in the Head (1990)

     Synopsis: The movie tells the story of three friends: Ben (Tony Leung Chiu-wai), Frank (Jacky Cheung), and Paul (Waise Lee), who regularly brawl with gang members in Hong Kong during the 1960s. Unfortunately, Frank accidentally kills one of the mobsters and the friends decide to flee Hong Kong. They go to Saigon, in order to work as smugglers in the ravaged by war Vietnam. However, things do not go as planned and the protagonists find themselves on the run, together with a hitman Luke (Simon Yam) and a nightclub singer Sally (Yolinda Yam), from the Vietcong soldiers. Eventually, Paul betrays his friends for a box of gold…

     Opinion: Bullet in the Head stands out of John Woo’s rich repertoire as not being just a standard bullet-ballet flick. It is neither as fast paced as A Better Tomorrow nor as spectacular as Hard Boiled. Nevertheless, the film’s primary asset is a human drama set against the background of a harrowing military conflict. John Woo’s reinvents the “bromance formula” known from his other films by turning it into a war epic similar to Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now. To me, Bullet in the Head is John Woo’s magnum opus.

2. A Chinese Ghost Story (1987)

     Synopsis: Ning Choi-san (Leslie Cheung) is a debt collector who visits local Chinese towns. Unfortunately, he is also plagued by misfortune as his account book is destroyed, so he has no money to pay for shelter. As a result, he spends a night in a haunted temple outside of the town. He encounters there an enchantingly beautiful woman called Nip Siu-sin (Joey Wong). Little does he know that Siu-sin is a ghost who lures travellers so that the Tree Demoness (Lau Siu-ming), a 1000-year-old monster, can eat men inside out. Nevertheless, Ning Choi-san falls for the ghost and protects her from dangers. In turn, Siu-sin protects him from other flesh-eating ghosts. With the help of a Taoist monk, Yin Chik-ha (Wu Ma), Choi-san descends into the deepest levels of hell to save Siu-sin from the grasp of the Tree Demoness.

     Opinion: The supernatural tale about the bond between a mortal man and a demon’s servant that quickly became a cult classic. The story is eerie, yet not scary, while being dynamic and touching at the same time. I highly recommend this film to anyone who is interested in discovering the hallmarks of Hong Kong cinema. The movie is entertaining and enjoyable in terms of action set pieces, but also poetic in its inventive subtlety.

1. In the Mood for Love (2000)

     Synopsis: Hong Kong, the 1960s. Mrs Chan (Tony Leung Chiu-wai) and Mr Chow (Maggie Cheung) rent rooms in the adjacent apartments on the same day. They move in with their spouses who are extremely busy as each of them works abroad. Mrs Chan and Mr Chow often spent their lonely days in the neighbouring apartments, accidentally encountering each other from time to time. With the passage of days and weeks, they begin to suspect that their spouses are cheating on them with each other. Mrs Chan and Mr Chow share their suspicions with one another, but they do not dare confront the situation. In fact, the two try to understand how the romance was initiated and they grow closer together in the process, yet Mrs Chan and Mr Chow do not want their relation to transform into a typical love affair...

     Opinion: One of the best movies ever made. It is visually stunning, but the form does not overshadow the thought-provoking content. Highly recommended to anyone who would like to spend a thoughtful evening immersed in the painting-like world crafted by Wong Kar-wai. It leaves you thinking about such things as love, longing, nostalgia, and past.

Next time: 5 South Korean Movies for the Isolation Period. Stay tuned!