Little Cheung (1999) [Film Review]

Little Cheung; or, The Age of Innocence

     I thought Little Cheung came to say goodbye. But he was chasing the ambulance. That was the end of your friendship and the end of our childhood. I will always remember my happy times with him in Hong Kong.
In the final movie of The Handover Trilogy, Little Cheung from 1999, Fruit Chan provides an autobiographical look at the life of a typical hardworking family. In the style similar to Edward Yang and Hirokazu Koreeda, he paints a portrait of children of Hong Kong.

Release Info

Directed by: Fruit Chan Starring: Yiu Yuet-Ming, Mak Wai-Fan, Yiu Yuet-Ming

Language: Cantonese Original Title: 細路祥 Runtime: 118 min

Synopsis
The story presents Little Cheung (Yiu Yuet-Ming) who leads an ordinary life with his working family in Hong Kong. Cheung’s grandmother (Chu Siu-Yau) enjoys watching the performances of a classic opera singer Brother Cheung, whereas the parents frequently clash with the neighbouring restaurant owners. Little Cheung soon befriends Fan (Mak Wai-Fan) who is an illegal immigrant. The girl starts helping Cheung in his food deliveries.

Hong Kong Citizens
Evidently, the protagonists are of the film are children. They may be poor, they may be working on the streets, but they remain unconcerned about grand historical events happening around them. One of the most interesting subplots of the film is Little Cheung and his grandmother’s obsessive fascination with a classic opera singer Brother Cheung. The Pilipino maid (Armi Andres) in the house accurately notices that the family would care more about the death of this singer rather than the death of Deng Xiaoping himself.

In this way, Fruit Chan communicates that being Chinese does not mean being an ideological communist by default. Communists do not understand ordinary life, which is reflected in yet another scene where Cheung together with his friends scream at Hong Kong downtown in the distance and say "Hong Kong is ours!"

Nevertheless, changes do take place in Little Cheung’s life. With the handover of power, Little Cheung’s childhood drastically comes to an end. He has to find his own voice in a new world. Ironically, in a twist similar to the conclusions of grand epics by Krzysztof Kieślowski, the protagonists of all three films encounter each other at the zebra crossing in the concluding scene of Little Cheung. After all, the citizens of Hong Kong constitute its future.

Recommendations
I highly recommend Little Cheung. It is a great conclusion of The Handover Trilogy. Unfortunately, as in the case of The Longest Summer, the movie to date has no Blu-ray release, so you need to fall back on DVD.
Overall score: 8/10

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The Longest Summer (1998) [Film Review]

The Longest Summer; or, Lost in a Big City
     I'm disappointed in you! Want me to join the mob? Want me to rob a bank? You think you're cool? I'm disappointed in you! I pity your parents! You understand?
The next movie from Fruit Chan’s The Handover Trilogy, The Longest Summer, is one of the few Hong Kong productions which openly addresses the 1997 transfer of power. Unlike Made in Hong Kong, the movie focuses on a group of retired soldiers who try to find a new way of life in post-British Hong Kong.

Release Info

Directed by: Fruit Chan Starring: Tony Ho, Sam Lee, Jo Koo

Language: Cantonese Original Title: 去年煙花特別多 Runtime: 128 min

Synopsis
The story revolves around five officers of the now disbanded Hong Kong Military Service Corps. Jobless and with no prospects, the retired officers decide to rob a bank, but in such a way that no one will get hurt. Surprisingly, the bank is robbed by another team of bandits just moments before the protagonists were about to enter the building. However, they manage to snatch the stolen cash and hide it. All of that happens during the period of the handover of power. However, there is a growing distrust among the colleagues about the money.

Kick the Habit
The Longer Summer is, in my opinion, Fruit Chan’s best motion picture. The director managed to craft a dynamic drama in which the main hero has to give up his entire identity, his own subconscious, in order to be able to embrace the new state of affairs. As a result, it can be inferred that the colonial legacy of Britain as well as the Chinese advent of communism are nothing more but ideological burdens.

The is perhaps most visible in the scene where the main hero, Ga Yin (Tony Ho), is informed by his triad boss that Hong Kong turned into a baby within the span of just one day. Indeed, this change is observable with the singing of Auld Lang Syne in two languages and with the arrival of the People’s Liberation Army.

Interestingly, this movie heavily emphasises Fruit Chan’s fascination with urban space. We get to see lots of scenes with the characters riding through Hong Kong’s downtown or being surrounded by the city’s hustle and bustle. This is arguably the strongest aesthetic advantage of the film.

The plotline itself is quite slow-paced and serves to initiate a discussion about the pros and cons of the handover of power. The scene in which the retired soldiers salute the People’s Liberation Army is, indeed, the most touching, but the grand moment is interrupted by a baffling police chase after a guy running with a melon. Hong Kong has truly become a baby that needs to grow up and stand on its own. The sad ending of the film communicates just that.

Recommendations
I recommend The Longest Summer to anyone who would like to see some tidbits from Hong Kong’s history. Unfortunately, the movie is not available on Blu-ray which is a real shame. As a result, we are forced to admire the beauty of Hong Kong cityscape in a SD format. If you are not interested in the story, then watch the film just for the visuals. You won’t be disappointed.

Overall score: 8/10

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Suffering of Ninko (2016) [Film Review]

Suffering of Ninko; or, Carnal Visions
     Sexual indulgence is sinful for monk.
The decade of the 2010s has undeniably shown to us that the future of Japanese Cinema belongs to young, extremely skilled, and experimental filmmakers. Apart from One Cut of the Dead (2017), Violence Voyager (2018), and Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes (2021), Norihiro Niwatsukino’s debut feature, Suffering of Ninko (2016), is yet another example of how fresh approach and low budget can result in a decent motion picture.

Release Info

Directed by: Norihiro Niwatsukino Starring: Masato Tsujioka, Miho Wakabayashi, Yukino Arimoto

Language: Japanese Original Title: 仁光の受難 Runtime: 110 min

Synopsis
Ninko (Masato Tsujioka) is a Buddhist monk who diligently follows all the principles and practises asceticism. However, there is one problem. Ninko is incredibly handsome which, in consequence, draws the attention of women and men around him. Ninko desperately tries not to succumb to bodily desires, but horrible visions of demonic lust continue to haunt him. Ninko leaves his temple and embarks on a journey. In the mountains, he arrives at a village that is plagued by a demon spirit who kills men…

At World’s End
On the basis of the synopsis, one could think that Suffering of Ninko is nothing more than an adult feature filled with NSFW content. This is not true at all. Norihiro Niwatsukino provides a great addition to the genre of Japanese ghost stories by telling the audience a tale about a virtuous monk trying to preserve his purity.

Indeed, there are scenes of nakedness but these are thoughtfully framed within the folk tale convention. Namely, the live-action adventures of Ninko are cross-cut with parchment drawings and animations which, combined with the narrator’s voice, create an atmosphere of intimacy, as if we are reading an old, forgotten myth.

The production design is spot on. We get to see numerous naturalistic settings which seem as if taken straight from the world of Zatoichi. With regard to performances, Masato Tsujioka does a great job as the main lead, especially in the scenes where Ninko is shocked and terrified. Hideta Iwahashi is also interesting as a bloodthirsty samurai, but he does not have a lot of screen time. Miho Wakabayashi is just chilling as the demoness Yama-onna.Qyoko Kudo really elevates the film with her narration.

Recommendations
If you want to see something niche, bizarre, yet visually-intriguing, then I recommend Suffering of Ninko. Third Window Films released the film in dual format on DVD and Blu-Ray. Their edition contains a trailer, interview with director Norihiro Niwatsukino and a short film called Strawberry Jam.Overall score: 7/10

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