LAAPFF PRESENTS: HONG KONG GENERATIONS OF CINEMA, SPONSORED BY HONG KONG ECONOMIC AND TRADE OFFICE, SAN FRANCISCO
(September 15, 2022) Los Angeles, CA – The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) announced lineup for LAAPFF PRESENTS: HONG KONG GENERATIONS OF CINEMA, sponsored by Hong Kong Economic And Trade Office, San Francisco (HKETO). The special 1-day showcase will take place on October 15th in Los Angeles, at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Grand Ave.
HONG KONG GENERATIONS OF CINEMA celebrates the diverse storytelling talent to come out of Hong Kong, and uplifts its impact on audiences all over the globe. The lineup will feature filmmaking from different decades, including:
- The 1993 film HEROIC TRIO, directed by Johnnie To, starring Hong Kong cinema icons Maggie Cheung, Michelle Yeoh, and Anita Mui
- The 2019 film TWILIGHT’S KISS (SUK SUK); a quiet portrayal of a gay relationship between two men in their twilight years, directed by Ray Yeung
- And a shorts program featuring films from directors: Natalie Chao, Linhan Zhang, Wong Kar Wai, Kristi Hoi, and Esther Cheung.
“Hong Kong cinema has left a profound impact on world cinema. Beyond thrilling action set-pieces and dazzling visuals, film fans across the globe have fallen in love with these homegrown stories of resilience, hope, and promise, told through a unique cinematic lens. We look forward to presenting some of our favorites on the big screen,” says Kirby Peñafiel (Sr. Programmer, LAAPFF).
To view film schedule, film synopsis, and to secure a ticket, please visit: https://laapffpresents.eventive.org/welcome
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WHAT: LAAPFF PRESENTS: HONG KONG GENERATIONS OF CINEMA,
WHERE: MOCA GRAND AVE @ 250 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012
WHEN: SATURDAY OCTOBER 15, 2022 * screening times vary
TICKET PRICE: $5.00
TO SECURE TICKETS AND VIEW FILM SCHEDULE: https://laapffpresents.eventive.org/welcome
HEROIC TRIO
Narrative Feature directed by Johnnie To
83 minutes
1993
The supernova star power of Hong Kong cinema icons Maggie Cheung, Michelle Yeoh, and Anita Mui propels this gloriously unrestrained action extravaganza from genre maestro Johnnie To, which injects its martial-arts mayhem with a blast of comic-book lunacy. They are the knife-throwing, shotgun-toting, kung-fu-fighting super-heroines who must overcome their dark pasts in order to defeat an evil, baby-snatching eunuch who is terrorizing Hong Kong. Eye-popping motorcycle stunts, brain-exploding skeletons, infant cannibals, and kinetically choreographed wire work are all part of the delirium in this unstoppably entertaining cult favorite (referenced in Cheung’s international breakthrough Irma Vep), a kick-butt showcase for three of the coolest women warriors to ever hit the screen.
TWILIGHT’S KISS (SUK SUK)
Narrative Feature directed by Ray Yeung
92 mins
2019
Pak, a 70-year-old taxi driver who refuses to retire, meets Hoi, a retired 65-year-old single father at a park. Despite the families that they had built, the encounter sparks a desire that they had both suppressed and leads to a contemplation of a life together.Yeung grew up in Hong Kong. At the age 13, he was sent to an English boarding school outside of London. Prior to his career in entertainment, Yeung was a lawyer. He graduated from Columbia University School of the Arts in 2013. Yeung had expressed interest in doing a Cantonese-language film set in Hong Kong, having grown up there until age 13. He is based out of Hong Kong, where he moved in 2015 after graduating from his MFA program at Columbia University.
SHORTS PROGRAM
IN PASSING
Animated Short directed by Esther Cheung
4 minutes
2019
In Passing transports viewers and immerses them in the fleeting moments of everyday Hong Kong. Following two neighbors as they grow up in government housing in bustling Mong Kok, Kowloon, the film pays homage to old Hong Kong, and aims to capture the history and rich culture of the times. The film is inspired by my parents’ reminiscing on their childhoods.
NO LAW NO HEAVEN
Narrative Short directed by Kristi Hoi
24 minutes
2021
A man’s life in three vignettes as he navigates his sexual identity amidst tradition in Hong Kong’s notorious Kowloon Walled City.
THE HAND
Narrative short directed by Wong Kar Wai
44 minutes
2004
Like In the Mood for Love, The Hand is set in the hazy Hong Kong of the 1960s, but its characters couldn’t be more different from the earlier film’s restrained, haunted lovers. Originally conceived for the omnibus film Eros, the film—presented in this retrospective for the first time in its extended cut—tells the tale of Zhang (Chang Chen), a shy tailor’s assistant enraptured by a mysterious client, Miss Hua (Gong Li). A hypnotic tale of obsession, repression, and class divisions, The Hand finds Wong Kar Wai continuing to transition from the frenetic, energized style of his earlier films into a register that is lush with romantic grandeur.
THE LAST FERRY FROM GRASS ISLAND
Narrative directed by Linhan Zhang
14 minutes
2020
A Hong Kong hitman retires as a fisherman on the peaceful Grass Island. One day, his Chinese apprentice shows up, tasked to kill him before the last ferry departs.
Showtime: Playing in Shorts Program at
TO KNOW HER
Documentary directed by Natalie Chao
15 minutes
2019
Synopsis: A poetic exploration of the camera’s gaze and a family’s relationship with the filmmaker’s mother.
