It may seem strange to put the name of one of Hong Kong’s greatest filmmakers in the same sentence as writer’s block, but there is a case to be made that Michael Hui Koon-man has been suffering from exactly that for the past 30 years. Hui’s career came full circle on July 17 when he received the Hong Kong Film.
Through gangster epics and tense heist dramas, Johnnie To makes stylish and atmospheric cinema that courts mainstream appeal as often as it subverts it
Is there a hint of truth to the frequently whispered, though seemingly hyperbolic claim that Hong Kong cinema is dead? After all, how do you explain the minimal fanfare when, in April 2021, actor turned director Derek Tsang Kwok Cheung made history as the first Hong Kong-born filmmaker to be in the running for a best international feature film Oscar,.