Though I am a man of science and reason, I do carry Chinese DNA so I can be guilty, on occasion, of being “Chinese superstitious”.  I don’t believe in ghosts and spirits but I still do things like cleaning before Lunar New Year (and, for that matter, the Gregorian New Year) because I can understand the reasoning behind the notion of sweeping out the “bad things” of the passing year and starting the new year with a clean slate.  I know it’s silly and has no bearing whatsoever on the future but the Chinese DNA in my cells started developing 8,000 plus years ago on the banks of the Yellow River so the superstitious urges that the DNA dictates is a mighty hard thing to resist.

As this is my first post in the Year of the Ox, I’m loathe to make it a negative one.  My “Chinese superstitious” side is screaming for me to start off the new year on a positive note but the Hong Kong Film Critics Society’s jaw-dropping decision to name THREE KINGDOMS: RESURRECTION OF THE DRAGON as one of its recommended films of 2008 has my head shaking in bewilderment and my mind screaming: “Are you KIDDING me?  Did you guys actually SEE the movie?”.  I was able to overcome the urge to denounce the move when the Society announced their award winners last month.  However, when I read in the paper that they are presenting their awards today at 3 pm with a ceremony at the Hong Kong Film Archive, it stirred up the old grievance so I’m setting my Chinese superstitions aside to rail, once again, about the Hong Kong Films Society Awards.

In recommending THREE KINGDOMS: RESURRECTION OF THE DRAGON, the Society praised director Daniel Lee Yan-Kong for using ROMANCE OF THE THREE KINGDOMS as a backdrop for insights into the notions of destiny and karma.  When I read that, I went to check my DVD of the film to make sure that I didn’t get sold an illegal, pirated copy because the version of the movie that I saw didn’t have much thematic depth.  The movie that I saw looked good and had solid production values but it handled the philosophical aspects of war, life, destiny and karma in a very cursory and superficial way.  To argue that THREE KINGDOMS: RESURRECTION OF THE DRAGON was insightful about destiny and karma is like arguing that PLAYBOY COPS was penetrating social commentary on the nature of the rich and poor in Hong Kong and gave insight on the father-son relationship.  Both were slick productions but neither film offered profound wisdom about anything.

Besides taking issue with the Society’s opinion of the narrative depth of THREE KINGDOMS: RESURRECTION OF THE DRAGON, I think the film has many other problems that would make me hesitate to recommend it as one of the best films of 2008.  The way it changes history is at the top of the list.  It’s fine in a piece of historical fiction to tweak historical details but to change history wholesale by suggesting that Zhao Yun died heroically during a seige rather than, as happened in real life, dying of illness in old age not only annoys historical purists, it kills the film’s credibility with its core audience — ROMANCE OF THE THREE KINGDOMS fans.

Having Sammo Hung’s character narrate the film was also an odd choice.  The Three Kingdoms saga is filled with larger than life personalities like Zhao Yun, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei so why tell the story from the perspective of a low-level soldier like Hung’s Pingan? Not only is he a virtual no-name, he’s presented as a bit of a stumbling, bumbling buffoon.  So why would anyone expect the audience to give two cents about this character much less anything this character has to say?  An odd narrative decision.

Like I said earlier, the film has solid, slick production values, but it’s marred by clumsy storytelling, inconsistent pacing and action sequences edited with the herky-jerky, murky style that filmmakers continue to use despite the fact that 95% of moviegoers are annoyed by it.  Add that all together and THREE KINGDOMS: RESURRECTION OF THE DRAGON is closer to being one of the worst movies of 2008 than one of the best.  As I said earlier, you have to wonder if the Hong Kong Film Critics Society saw a different version of the movie.

FOR THE RECORD: The Hong Kong Film Critics Society gathered on January 4th to determine the winners for their 15th annual awards (click here for the winners list). They spent eight hours and used three rounds of voting to sift through fifty-five eligible films. While the number of films under consideration was up four from 2007, most of the films from 2008 were deemed “poor quality” and only eight to twelve films were seriously considered for awards.

By a wide margin, Ann Hui On-Wah’s THE WAY WE ARE was named Best Film of 2008.  HIGH NOON, SPARROW, THE BEAST STALKER, RUN PAPA RUN, CITY OF BASEBALL, IP MAN, FATAL MOVE and CLAUSTROPHOBIA were also considered but the overwhelming support for THE WAY WE ARE made a final vote moot.

The following is a list of candidates nominated for voting, the finalists and the winners for the remaining categories: Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actress and Best Actor.

Image credits: Beijing Poly-bona Film Publishing Company (THREE KINGDOMS: RESURRECTION OF THE DRAGON poster), BIG Pictures (PLAYBOY COPS poster)

Revised at 12:04 pm

Last week, the Hong Kong Film Critics Society released the winners list for its 14th annual awards. I was incredulous when I saw that it named THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT as the Best Film of 2007. I had an Allen Iverson-practice moment when I read the news. I mean, we’re sitting here and the award is supposed to go to the best film of the year and we’re talking about THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT? THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT? THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT? Not MAD DETECTIVE, not THE WARLORDS but THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT. We’re supposed to be talking about the best movie of the year produced by an industry that I follow passionately and approach every movie it makes like it’s going to be the best movie I’m ever going to see and we’re talking about THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT.

I reviewed the film last May and thought that there was no poignancy in its unyielding sadness. As a result, I was stunned when I found out it was named Best Film. In order to get an understanding of why the Hong Kong Film Critics Society (HKFCS) awarded the movie with the top prize, I decided to read the society’s official awards statement. At the very least, I hope to learn what the society members were on when they made their decision because I want to get me some of that.

On January 20th, the HKFCS gathered to determine its annual awards. After nine spirited hours of debate and three rounds of voting, the society named the winners of its 14th annual awards. In all, fifty-one films were considered but only nine or ten were serious candidates for awards. THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT emerged as the Best Film of 2007. It was nominated for voting consideration along with the following films:

THE WARLORDS
EYE IN THE SKY
MAD DETECTIVE
WHISPERS AND MOANS
TRIANGLE
HOOKED ON YOU

After the preliminary round of voting, only three films: THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT, THE WARLORDS and MAD DETECTIVE were considered for the final vote. THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT won.

Why? According to the HKFCS:

The POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT is unrestrained filmmaking from Ann Hui On-Wah that shows she is back at the top of her game. Bringing forth a fresh perspective from the haze of her older work, Hui uses Shanghai to reflect the current state of Hong Kong and the helplessness of life. She has made a richly-layered and touching film that reveals sorrow through humour and allows passion to seep through restraint. It moves from being wildly imaginative to being simple and unadorned. A masterful display of exquisite brushwork that deftly paints a portrait of the human spirit.

Obviously, the HKFCS saw the poignancy in Ye Rutang’s tragic fate that I failed to see. I still maintain that the film’s thematic nuances are too faint to be meaningful. If somebody out there “gets” the film, I’d appreciate it if you would let me know what I’m missing because all I see is a heavy-handed, blunt delivery of the “life sucks sometimes” theme and not a “masterful display of exquisite brushwork that deftly paints a portrait of the human spirit.”

FOR THE RECORD: The following is the list of candidates nominated for voting, the finalists and the winners in the Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actress and Best Actor categories:

MISCELLANEOUS THOUGHTS:

- It was good to see that Kate Tsui Tsz-Shan was considered for Best Actress. For a while there, I was afraid I was impressed with her work only because my expectations were lowered by the negative chatter about her acting on the discussion forums.

- Also good to see Teresa Mo get consideration for her role in MR. CINEMA. Here’s hoping she gets a Hong Kong Film Award nomination as well.

- Speaking of MR. CINEMA, I’m surprised it wasn’t in consideration for Best Film. Granted, it’s not a weighty piece of work but I thought it was more insightful and a better piece of art than THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF AUNT.

- Wow, the HKFCS must have really, really liked THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT. Not only did it win Best Film but Siqin Gaowa won Best Actress uncontested in the final round of voting. Wow. I’m sorely tempted to reach out to the HKFCS to see if someone there can enlighten me on their love for the film.

- I have much respect and admiration for Chow Yun-Fat’s body of work over the years but I can’t believe the HKFCS thought his performance in THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF MY AUNT was one of the top five performances in 2007. As I said back in May, if it wasn’t the mighty Fat-Gor giving that performance on the screen, my eyes would be rolling at the exaggerated gestures and hammy expressions. Even if you accept the premise that the demeanour was a deliberate ploy by a conman out to scam a lonely woman, I don’t know if 5% of HK entertainment fans would categorize it as one of the year’s top five performances.

- I actually thought Simon Yam Tat-Wah did better work in EXODUS than he did in EYE IN THE SKY. Still, it’s nice to see that he’s getting some recognition. Since Lau Ching-Wan won a Hong Kong Film Award last year, I think Simon Yam Tat-Wah is the next unrecognized veteran who needs to get recognized with a HKFA. Let us all burn incense and offer fish and roasted suckling pigs to the Hong Kong Movie Gods in support of Simon Yam.

IMAGE CREDITS: Beijing Poly-bona Film Publishing Company (THE POSTMODERN LIFE OF AUNT poster, Chow Yun-Fat), Sil-Metropol Organization (Teresa Mo), Filmko Pictures (Simon Yam)