Shadows Review 2020 Hong Kong 殘影空間

Shadows 殘影空間

Year: 2020
Director: Glenn Chan
Writer: Felix Tsang, Kiwi Chow
Cast: Stephy Tang, Philip Keung, Tse Kwan-ho, Ben Yuen
Running Time: 94 minutes

Country: Hong Kong

The UK Premiere is on July 25th at BFI Southbank as part of the Chinese Visual Festival (Tickets)

Shadows is a dark psychological thriller with nightmarish imagery and some supernatural elements. Featuring another excellent lead performance from Stephy Tang. This has been hailed as one of the best Hong Kong films of the year.

Revolving around a sinister murder case in which a social worker is compelled by an inner voice to kill his family and commit suicide. Shot in atmospheric noir style and with a taut, twisting narrative that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats, the film features a commanding lead performance by popular actress Stephy Tang, who was herself traumatised by the emotionally gruelling shoot and the film’s delving into the darkness of the human psyche. (Chinese Visual Festival)

Glenn Chan makes his Hong Kong film debut with an ambitious thriller that will make an impression with its uniqueness and inventiveness. Out of recent Hong Kong films, it's hard to think of one that is similar. And while not everything about this film works, there is plenty to celebrate and admire.

Stephy Tang is a revelation. Over the years, she has managed to shake off the pop star image and establish herself as a serious actress. Stephy is now known for acting in challenging and dramatic roles, her most prominent being The Empty Hands and My Prince Edward. Both of these roles got her a nomination for Best Actress at the Hong Kong Film Awards. After watching Shadows, it feels like she could receive a third nomination as she delivers another show-stealing performance.

This film is incredibly stylish. Featuring slick camerawork and great cinematography to give it a noir feel. There is brilliant use of lighting throughout to create the dark mood and unsettling atmosphere. When Dr Tsui enters into a patient's subconscious there is often an impressive use of imagery and visual effects on display to capture how anxious and terrifying the whole process is. It's all handled excellently.

Unfortunately, the scenes inside the patients subconscious is an intriguing idea, and it looks fantastic, but it feels like an idea that was never fully realised. This was a concept that deserved more time to be explored before the film reached its exciting and somewhat bemusing conclusion. While this gimmick might have borrowed ideas from other films, they manage to make it work and still feel fresh and it feels like more screen time should have been spent on this. 

Philip Keung co-stars as detective Ho and injects some fun into the story. Ho and Dr Tsui team up in an almost buddy-cop style trope as they investigate the crime together. His character of Ho is pretty simple and wants to work within the law and catch the bad guys, but the way he plays off of Dr Tsui is a neat contrast. There's also a side story involving his daughter which is often touching and charming.

At a trim 94 minutes, the film is a breeze, and it is entertaining from start to finish. Some extra time to fully develop the ideas and plot could have benefited the overall story, as well as more time exploring how much actual power the psychiatrists have over the patient's free will. Parts of the film are pretty ambiguous which suits the style and genre of film, but some viewers might think it's too open-ended.

Overall, Shadows is a good thriller that is visually stunning and entertaining even with its flaws.

7/10

Reviewed as part of the Chinese Visual Festival / Focus Hong Kong

Drifting 2021 Hong Kong 濁水漂流

Drifting 濁水漂流

Year: 2021
Director: Jun Li
Writer: Jun Li
Cast: Francis Ng, Loretta Lee, Tse Kwan-ho, Cecilia Choi
Running Time: 112 minutes
Country: Hong Kong

"I may be homeless. But I am not worthless."

The excellent Francis Ng is almost unrecognisable as he delivers one of his finest performances in this powerful drama about a group of homeless people. One of the very best Hong Kong films of the year.

Jun Li follows his acclaimed trans drama Tracey with a socially conscious story focusing on the plight of the homeless in Hong Kong, based on a real life incident. Taking place against a contrasting backdrop of luxury and extreme poverty, the film follows Fai (Francis Ng), just out of jail and stuck in an endless cycle of nomadism, coming up against an uncaring government and a police force whose actions are antagonistic at best. A stunningly frank film about Hong Kong’s socio-political and economic divide, Drifting confirms Jun Li as a passionate filmmaker committed to bringing the stories of the marginalised to the screen. (Chinese Visual Festival)

Jun Li wrote and directed Drifting and based it on a 2012 court case that involved homeless people in Sham Shui Po. But rather than focusing on the court case, Li puts the characters at the forefront. Their stories, daily life and struggles are explored much deeper than surface level. There's also not too much attention on the reasons that they ended up homeless. There's a memorable scene with Fai chatting to reporters, and he explains that the media is only interested in talking about this drug use or his time spent in prison. This is an intriguing piece of social commentary on not only how the media sometimes view homeless people, but also some of the general public share a similar view. Li often makes it clear that it's not important why they are homeless, it's about their hardships and how other people treat them, even those with good intentions.

Hong Kong is a beautiful country, and the film captures this with excellent cinematography by Leung Ming-kai. The high-rise flats and skyline are on full display and often suddenly juxtaposed with the homeless camps and temporary accommodation. It's a startling contrast showing off the living conditions of the rich versus the poor, especially in Hong Kong, where apartment prices are sky-high. With more and more high-rise apartment buildings springing up anywhere there is vacant land, it makes the characters wonder where the homeless people are supposed to go.

The cast are all splendid in these often challenging roles. Francis Ng has always been a superb actor but doesn't always get the chance to show his full potential as he does here in his role as Fai. Ng has undergone a transformation of sorts and plays an extremely convincing drug addict. It's a powerful performance that easily could have gone too far, but they know exactly when to dial it back. Elsewhere, Cecilia Choi and Pak Hon Chu also shine in their supporting roles. It's always a treat to see Loletta Lee in a modern Hong Kong film especially with a film that allows her to sink her teeth into the role. Tse Kwan-ho almost steals the show with one particularly heartbreaking scene involving a video call which is sure to have award shows and festivals buzzing.

Drifting captures a true sense of realism while still being visually stunning and cinematic. The film feels almost like a docu-drama at times, with the viewers standing at the side and watching the character's lives unfold. This emphasises the helplessness as you watch this heartbreaking tale unfold. Jun Li manages to craft all of this wonderfully without the film ever becoming "poverty porn." Drifting is one of the most affecting Hong Kong films to come out in years, and it will leave you thinking about the characters and their situation long after the credits have finished rolling.

8/10

Drifting has it's UK premiere at the Chinese Visual Festival on the 15th of July 2021.