MOVIE REVIEW: THE MIDNIGHT AFTER (HONG KONG) 那夜凌晨, 我坐上了旺角開往大埔的紅VAN (2014)

“THE MIDNIGHT AFTER” MOVIE REVIEW

那夜凌晨，我坐上了旺角開往大埔的紅 VAN”.

Film director FRUIT CHAN.

He is known for his artsy movies, though there are not that many to crow about. You can always google for a list.

His films never fail to portray a doleful surrealistic difference, boldly treading on brazen subjects, yet everything will eventually come together to hit the right notes.

For a decade this director-cum- producer is always on the prowl waiting to pounce on the right cinematic content. The next one can be the eventual winner, right?

And he accomplished his latest creative mojo with this new offering called “THE MIDNIGHT AFTER”.

It is his first notable Chinese-language feature dwelling on the horrific subject of  both of horror and the macabre.

Along with a sardonic streak of dark comedy as some scenes can make your skin crawl.

FRUIT CHAN has created a creepy claustophobic thriller with “MIDNIGHT”.

His last notable piece was the deliciously haunting “Dumplings” in 2004 which garnered impressive reviews.

The theme of “THE MIDNIGHT AFTER” is equally disturbing.

You witness Hong Kong being stripped of the notorious traffic jams and thronging crowds.

This is a post-apocalyptic satire that questions your sanity.

FRUIT CHAN’s taken his movie idea from a popular web series turned best seller by a Hong Kong novelist called PIZZA.

It is called “My Boarding the Red Mini Bus from Mongkok to Taipo” (translated) and it reads a mouthful.

Here are the principal characters:

The fat sweaty minibus driver who a compulsive gambler and is called Suet (Lam Suet).

There’s a long haired air-head called You Chi Chi (Wong You-Nam) forever looking woeful because his girl friend cancels a date.

Simon Yam plays a nasty looking debt collector Wong Man-Fat.

He is actually a coward by nature so don’t be fooled. Appearances can be deceptive.

Yuki with the squeamish girl look is played by Janice Man.

Then there is big Sister Ying ( Kara Hui) who is someone you would want to slap for her occasional bouts of sarcasm.

She is an opportunistic insurance saleswoman by profession.

We have additionally, a doomed married couple Bobby and Pat (Lee Sheung-Ching and Vincci Cheuk).

Also a bespectacled IT specialist Shun (Chui Tien-You).

There are other principal players making a total of 17 passengers on the minibus.

As soon as the mini bus passes through Lion Rock Tunnel, all the passengers realize that things are not as normal as they seem.

The streets are devoid of pedestrians, phone don’t work and radio stations are seemingly closed. Suddenly an ominous masked figure lurks in the shadows.

They all go their separate ways but when everyone simultaneously receive a spooky call in the middle of the night, the group decides to congregate at a local restaurant in the morning whereupon more inexplicable happenings start erupting.

“THE MIDNIGHT AFTER” is harrowing, bloody, sometimes funny but it will make you shudder.

You can almost feel the characters telling themselves it is just a game.

Whatever the case, just hang on because you are in for a screamy, bumpy ride.

Rating: 4 out of 5

LOCAL DISTRIBUTOR: GSC MOVIES

MOVIE REVIEW: AS THE LIGHT GOES OUT 救火英雄

“AS THE LIGHT GOES OUT” PRESS REVIEW  

救火英雄 

“AS THE LIGHT GOES OUT” is one amazing movie that attempts a lot.

It tries very hard, to cramp fiery action, high drama, family angst and buddy obligations, all within a single day’s occurrence. You bet it leaves little chance for character development.

You will find an irksome sprinkle of wise sayings extolling the doctrines of life-and-death, goodness gracious. For spouting this much, you know this dude is doomed to die. And he did vanquish as a hero, swallowed by roaring flames.

It’s kind of a story retelling culled from the popular Hong Kong TVB high dramas or competitive films such as the recent lack luster ” Out of Inferno”.

This theme is not new, is formulaic actually, but it reigns supreme on the Director Derek Kwok’s visual and storytelling treatment board.

The Director does an admirable job to pull vital bits of scenarios together and assemble them neatly on a single stylized platter.

So the sum of it all is either you get impressed or you don’t.

I follow Derek Kwok’s body of work.

This one ain’t going to be his best.

 ”AS THE LIGHT GOES OUT” has all the ingredients of a blockbuster.

Derek Kwok (“Gallants” in 2010) carefully picked his ensemble comprising of Hong Kong cinematic greats like Nicholas Tse, Shawn Yue, Simon Yam and Hu Jun.

The story occurs on a single night during Christmas Eve when a team of chummy firefighters – chief Sam (Nicholas Tse), Chill (Shawn Yue), Tao (Simon Yam), Ocean (Hu Jun) from Hong Kong’s  Pillar Point Division are assigned to diminish a threatening fiery blaze at a local winery.

It looks like a great job accomplished, until the blaze reignites from the alcohol warehouse to a nearby power plant.

What follows?

The entire Hong Kong is plunged into abject darkness as the fire rages.

“AS THE LIGHT GOES OUT” is a poignant and powerful film in terms of fiery action and stupendous visual effects.

Kudos to convincing performances by the leads.

The film is both riveting and suspenseful and keeps you guessing who’s going to be the next victim to be claimed by the raging flames.

Or who’s going to be rescued in the nick of time.

For fans of disaster movies, this one’s for you.

This film could have been rendered so much better.

But then, what’s sauce for the goose is not sauce for the gander.

For sure I ain’t going to be any firefighter.

Right?

ECHOES OF THE RAINBOW 歲月神偷 Movie Review. Come Take My Hand. Together let’s stroll down Memory Lane.

PRESS PREVIEW

For the baby boomer, watching ECHOES OF THE RAINBOWcan be an enriching experience in poetic indulgence.

For one, it stretches your imagination.

ECHOES OF THE RAINBOW is indeed, a mushy film.

It reeks of this powerful element called emotion.

It reaches your heartstrings and tugs.

Hear the echoes?

You eyes will swell with tears

You may reach for the tissue when you hear the familar echoes of LOVE amid rainbow hues chiming resonantly in your ears:

They beckon you to take note:

“Come take my hand …..

Together let’s stroll down memory lane.”

Shall we?

ECHOES OF THE RAINBOW shows us that love is universal.

LOVE transcends time, boundaries and creeds.

That there’s no greater journey than the one that leads you to love.

SOMETIMES, if you can catch the breeze at the right time, you’ll have this surging feeling that love is all around us.

Have you ever been assailed by such intense happiness inside, that you feel that you’re like a lark going to burst into song?

For crying out loud, everybody does.

Good things are transient, are momentary, they never last.

Treasure love when it’s around.

Maybe for now, it is staring at you in the face.

But it’s like a car, parked at your door, and when the time comes, it revs up and roars off.

Weep not when love dies.

People do fall out of love.

TIME WILL HEAL MOST EVERYTHING, but memories cannot be erased.

Directed by ALEX LAU who also wrote the wonderful screenplay, ECHOES OF THE RAINBOW competed in the Berlin International Film Festival and bagged the CRYSTALBEAR AWARD for the Best Film in the Children’s Jury “Generation Kplus”.

It also garnered 6 nominations in the 29th Hong Kong FilmAwards to be held on April 18, 2010: SIMON YAM (Best Actor), SANDRA NG (Best Actress), Best New Performers (AARIF LEE and CHUNG SHIU TO), Best Screenplay (ALEX LAU) and Best Original Film Song.

ECHOES OF THE RAINBOW transports us to vintage Hong Kong in the 1960s, a long lost era that was once peppered with beauty, charm and character.

The story is narrated through the eyes of one gawky pre-teenager, our protagonist.

He comes from this simple family.

His father (SIMON YAM) is simple. He’s hard nosed, works as a cobbler and is a disciplinarian.

His mother (SANDRA NG) is simple. She believes in the sunny side, that everything is attainable, if you dare dream.

His elder brother (AARIF LEE) is simple. He has those dreamy eyes for his tropical fishes and sports, until he discovers his one true puppy love.

Our protagonist is simple. He sees life through rose-tinted innocence.

The plot is simple. Life is about love.

Love and loyalty for your parents, siblings, neighbors, friends and your sweetheart.

SIMON YAM is absolutely good. He shows us that he retains versatility in choices of characters. He plays a good father this time round, after a string of baddie roles.

SANDRA NG is no longer a madcap this time. She is the doting mother with an eye for positivism and this is pivotal during hard times, in keeping the family together.

Enjoy the beautiful score in this fantastic movie and behold a new rising sexy Hong Kong star called AARIF LEE, a cross between FEI XIANG and LEE HOM. He’s one actor to watch in the coming years.

As this reviewer has said earlier, love can be simple and that there’s no greater journey than the one that leads you to love.

Listen to an old hit by PAUL ANKA, Times Of Your Life :

“Good morning, yesterday
You wake up and time has slipped away
And suddenly it’s hard to find
The memories you left behind
Remember, do you remember?

The laughter and the tears
The shadows of misty yesteryears
The good times and the bad you’ve seen
And all the others in between
Remember, do you remember
The times of your life?

Reach out for the joy and the sorrow
Put them away in your mind
The memories are time that you borrow
To spend when you get to tomorrow

Here comes the setting sun
The seasons are passing one by one
So gather moments while you may
Collect the dreams you dream today
Remember, will you remember
The times of your life?”

ECHOES OF THE RAINBOW is an award winning film that demonstrates that life and family are only complete if we treasure love.

Enjoy today as the clock goes ticking, as we can never know what tomorrow will bring.

Because time and tide wait for no man.

And that life is a series of comings and goings.

Not forgetting DEATH, as all human beings have to depart this earth one day.

ECHOES OF THE RAINBOW is such a lilting splendid film that you cannot afford to miss!

At the end of it all, when the credits roll, you find that you are still so comfy in your seat and unwilling to leave the theater.

That’s the magic of this gem of a movie.

Now, CRY ME A RIVER.

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