Hong Kong New Wave Cinema (1978-2000)

266 Pages·2008·1.519 MB·English

by  Zhuo, Botang

Hong Kong New Wave Cinema (1978–2000) C
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By Pak Tong Cheuk e
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The critically acclaimed and popular Hong Kong ‘New Wave’ played H
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a historically, economically and culturally significant role in Hong Kong
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and China’s cinema industries. Hong Kong New Wave Cinema presents

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a comprehensive theoretical analysis of the movement, focusing on its o
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historical context, style, and directors.
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Cheuk engages with the aesthetic of ‘New Wave’, exploring narrative e
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content, structure and mise-en-scène to offer a thorough understanding

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of the genre. Additionally, Cheuk discusses the directors, analysing
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trends in their education (the majority are graduates from Western v
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universities) and providing valuable insight into the directors’ reccurring
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themes – oppositions between East and West, rich and poor, and in
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concerns with identity in Hong Kong. Hong Kong New Wave Cinema m
offers comprehensive coverage of the ‘New Wave’, contextualising the a

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cinema and explaining its effects worldwide. 1
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Pak Tong Cheuk is Associate Professor in the Department of Film and Television at Hong Kong Baptist University.
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ISBN 978-1-84150-148-2
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9 781841 501482
intellect / www.intellectbooks.com
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Hong Kong New Wave Cinema
(1978–2000)
Pak Tong CHEUK
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Hong Kong New Wave Cinema
(1978–2000)
Pak Tong CHEUK
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First Published in the UK in 2008 by
Intellect Books, The Mill, Parnall Road, Fishponds, Bristol, BS16 3JG, UK
First published in the USA in 2008 by
Intellect Books, The University of Chicago Press, 1427 E. 60th Street, Chicago,
IL 60637, USA
Copyright © 2008 Intellect Ltd
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without
written permission.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Cover Design: Gabriel Solomons
Copy Editor: Holly Spradling
Typesetting: Mac Style, Nafferton, E. Yorkshire
ISBN 978-1-84150-148-2/EISBN 978-1-84150-225-0
Printed and bound by Gutenberg Press, Malta.
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C
ONTENTS
Introduction 7
11 The Emergence of the New Wave9
22 The Interactive Relationship Between Hong Kong’s Film and Television Industries 29
33 Ann Hui 53
44 Tsui Hark 83
55 Patrick Tam 119
66 Yim Ho 147
77 Allen Fong 163
88 Alex Cheung 179
99 Studies on Non-Core New Wave Directors
Kirk Wong and Clifford Choi 189
1100 Studies on Non-Core New Wave Directors
Lau Shing Hon, Tong Kee Ming, Peter Yung and Dennis Yu 211
1111 Contributions and Influence of the New Wave 233
Filmography 247
References in Chinese 257
Acknowledgements 263
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I
NTRODUCTION
In the short span of eight years from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, the Hong Kong
film industry spawned a group of young directors aged about thirty. This brand new
force consisted of about thirty people, including Ann Hui, Yim Ho, Tsui Hark, Allen
Fong, Patrick Tam, Clifford Choi, Dennis Yu and others. Most of them had received
film training overseas, particularly in the United States and the United Kingdom; then,
at various points in time, joined several local television broadcasting institutions: Hong
Kong Television (Television Broadcasts Limited), Rediffusion Television (the progenitor
of Asia Television) and Commercial Television, the television unit of Radio Television
Hong Kong. After gaining practical experience in film-making for several years in the
television industry, many of them left and entered the film industry.
The infusion of so much indigenous new blood in the field of film was unprecedented
in the 80-year history of Hong Kong cinema. Passionate about film and art, these new
directors gradually got a feel for current social developments. They were familiar with
what the audience liked and could make films with unique ideas, interesting themes,
forceful images and unusual styles. Their works were widely accepted by the mass
audience and also gained recognition from the news media and critics. This group of
young directors, with their irrepressible attitude, was like a huge wave passing through
a Hong Kong film industry that was then at a low tide, opening up a new terrain.
People thus dubbed them ‘The New Wave’ of Hong Kong cinema.
Of all the Chinese communities around the globe, including mainland China, Taiwan
and Singapore, Hong Kong was the first to produce its own New Wave films. Its
emergence, to various degrees, stimulated the emergence of the Fifth Generation of
mainland film-makers as well as Taiwan’s New Cinema. It stimulated change in the film
industries on both sides of the Strait. The aim of this study is to examine the causes of
the emergence of the Hong Kong New Wave in the late 1970s, the New Wave’s
relationship with the television industry, the interaction between New Wave works and
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8 | HONG KONG NEW WAVE CINEMA (1978–2000)
their far-reaching influence on the film industry. The content, style and aesthetic
achievements of the New Wave films will be analysed, and larger questions, such as
how pluralistic cultures encourage the making of films and how films respond to
diverse voices in society, will also be addressed.
For the purposes of continuity and cohesion, the scope of this work is not limited to
the period of the New Wave but also extends to the year 2000. Certain New Wave
directors, namely, Tsui Hark, Ann Hui, Yim Ho and Kirk Wong, had been absorbed into
Hong Kong mainstream cinema and still had an impact on the industry. Also, if their
works are studied as a whole, from the period preceding the New Wave (that is, the
works they produced while working in the television industry), the New Wave period
and their subsequent works, a more comprehensive picture emerges.
The twelve New Wave directors discussed in this work are classified into two groups:
core auteurs and non-core auteurs. The reason for this is that, among these New Wave
talents, some, such as Lam Kuen and Ng Siu-wan, made only one or two films before
leaving the film industry. Others, such as Rachel Zen, Wong Chi and Lee Pui-kuen,
remained in the television industry, making no more films and exerting no influence on
the general development of the New Wave. A few directors also emerged in an earlier
period of the New Wave and had little in common with more significant New Wave
directors. Leong Po-chih belongs in this category. There were also directors on the
fringes of the New Wave, such as Johnny Mak. The discussion here will exclude the
latter two groups of film-makers.
The twelve New Wave directors referred to here have been divided into core auteurs
and non-core auteurs, according to the experimental spirit of their work and the extent
of their impact. That is to say, the members of the first group made more experimental
films than the second group. They also never stopped producing and, therefore, had
relatively more influence than the second group. More importantly, throughout their
works, they display a consistent vision of life. The film-makers of the latter group, in
contrast, made films that were less experimental. Their influence was thus not as
strong as that of the first group. Some of them even stopped making films after several
productions or only made films intermittently. Also, the ideas and styles in their films
are scattered and disorderly that do not amount to a coherent vision of life.
Chapter 1 of this study will explore the origins of the New Wave. Chapter 2 will
consider the relationship which existed between the New Wave and the Hong Kong
film and television industries. Chapters 3 to 8 will then focus on the core New Wave
directors, whilst Chapters 9 to 10 will cover the non-core directors. Finally, Chapter 11
will conclude on the contribution and influence of the New Wave.
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1
T E N W
HE MERGENCE OF THE EW AVE
In 1978 a new force burst into the Hong Kong film industry like lightning on a clear
day. These young directors were, on average, not over thirty years of age. A
conservative estimate places their number at over thirty.1 Born around 1950, most of
them graduated from film schools in the United States or the United Kingdom and
returned to Hong Kong in the mid-1970s. All at about the same time, they went to
work for Hong Kong’s television stations – which were dubbed ‘Shaolin Temples’2 –
and underwent two to three years of training. In this way, they accumulated practical
experience in making dramas and became proficient at the language of film. Then,
without prior arrangement, they left the television stations and joined the film industry.
Passionately committed to film, they made movies rich in feeling, with unique ideas
and structures. This group of young people, like an irresistible force, stirred up a
colossal wave when the film industry was at low tide and opened up new vistas. The
influx of so much new blood into Hong Kong cinema was unprecedented. The media
and the critics dubbed these new directors ‘The New Wave’ of Hong Kong cinema.
The Origin of ‘The New Wave’
The term ‘The New Wave’ originated from the French New Wave Cinema.3 In 1959,
Truffaut and Godard, who were critics in Cahiers du Cinéma, made their first films,
respectively: 400 Blows and Breathless.4 These two films not only injected vitality into
the ossified forms of cinema, they also explored film as a subject in itself. 400 Blows, a
semi-autographical film, boldly included personal experiences and feelings. Breathless
incorporated hand-held cinematography and the technique of ‘jump-cutting’ to
deliberately create disharmony and depart from common motifs and conventions.5
These two films proclaimed the birth of the French New Wave.
The first to name this group of young directors, who at the time were still working in
television, as the ‘New Wave’ was a periodical of film and television criticism, Da Texie