Hong Kong is home to the most influential film industry in Asia, outside of India and Japan. The city has produced an impressive list of some of the most important film artists of the past half-century: Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Ann Hui, Tsui Hark, John Woo, and Wong Kar-wai, to name a few. If you’re making a film in the martial arts, action, police procedural, or art film genres, you’re undoubtedly drawing on the legacy of Hong Kong filmmakers.
The work of these master artists, and others, is celebrated every year by the city’s premiere awards ceremony, the Hong Kong Film Awards. The 40th iteration of the Hong Kong Film Awards was held earlier this month, on July 17, 2022, after being postponed several times due to COVID. At the ceremony, three movies stood out far above the rest and snatched an impressive 13 of the 18 total awards: Raging Fire, Limbo, and Anita.
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Two Grudges Face Off in Raging Fire
Emperor Motion Pictures
Raging Fire is a police thriller in the vein of the 1980’s action films by John Woo. Detective Cheung Sung-bong (played by the incomparable Donnie Yen) is devoted to truth and justice no matter what, even when it gets in the way of his career. When the division commander invites him to dinner and demands that he falsifies a criminal report to exonerate his wealthy friend’s son, Bong storms out. Later that night, he discovers that he’s been removed from the biggest case of his life, a bust of a major drug smuggler. But when the rest of the team gets wiped out by a group of masked killers, Bong is the only detective left who can bring the criminals to justice, no matter what hard truths the case reveals.
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At the Hong Kong Film Awards, Raging Fire won Best Film, Best Director, Best Film Editing, and Best Action Choreography. Its director, Benny Chan, had made several award-winning films, such as A Moment of Romance (1990), Big Bullet (1996), and Who Am I? (1998), and had been nominated for Best Director at the Hong Kong Film Awards five previous times, but never won. Raging Fire has finally clinched the esteemed filmmaker his first ever Best Director award, but unfortunately, he was not here to receive it — he passed away from cancer before the film was released.
Filling in the film’s leading role is Donnie Yen, one of the top stars in Hong Kong, if not the entire Chinese-speaking world. Yen specializes in martial arts roles, best known for the international sensation Ip Man (2008) and its sequels. Even those who haven’t seen Yen’s many iconic Chinese-language roles will likely recognize him from recent supporting roles in Hollywood films, including the space monk Chiirrut Îmwe in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), the villain Xiang in XXX: Return of Xander Cage (2017), Commander Tung in Disney’s live-action Mulan (2020), and an upcoming role in John Wick: Chapter 4 (expected to release 2023). As always, Yen’s performance is captivating to watch.
Raging Fire released on August 19, 2021, in Hong Kong, and it is available to stream on Kanopy and Hoopla (free for most in the U.S. through their local library).
Detectives Rummaging Through the Filth of Hong Kong in Limbo
Just Distribution Limited
Limbo is a simultaneously gorgeous and repulsive action thriller about two detectives desperate to catch a serial killer roaming Hong Kong. The characters writhe around in filth, both literally and figuratively: the film casts its characters into cluttered sets overflowing with piles of garbage hiding the occasional splayed corpse. All this filth is transformed by the stunning black-and-white cinematography into reluctantly gorgeous images that serve as metaphors for the city’s hidden evils.
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The film is directed by Cheang Pou-soi and stars Gordon Lam (Infernal Affairs, Ip Man, Cold War), Cya Liu, Mason Lee, and Hiroyuki Ikeuchi. It’s based on the 2016 Chinese novel Wisdom Tooth by Lei Mi. At the Hong Kong Film Awards, it won Best Screenplay, Best Actress, Best Cinematography, and Best Art Direction.
Limbo released on November 18, 2021.
One Last Song from the Cantopop Queen in Anita
Huaxia Films Distribution
Anita is a biographical musical focused on singer Anita Mui, nicknamed “the Queen of Cantopop” and “the Madonna of the East.” It follows the contours of her hugely influential life and career as one of the most iconic singers in Hong Kong history, performing from the age of 4 until her death at 40 from cervical cancer in 2003. The film debuted to mixed reviews but was praised for its musical and acting performances. At the Hong Kong Film Awards, it won Best Supporting Actress, Best New Performer, Best Costume & Make-Up Design, Best Visual Effects, and Best Sound Design.
The film is directed by Lok Man Leung (Cold War) and stars Louise Wong in her breakthrough first performance, in addition to an ensemble cast including Gordon Lam, Fish Lew, and Louis Koo. Anita released on November 12, 2021.
