About FILMeX
2023(24th Edition)
Programs
Life is Cheap... but Toilet Paper is Expensive
Special Screenings
Introduction
United States / 1989 / 85 min
Director：Wayne WANG
A young man arrives in Hong Kong from San Francisco with a briefcase for a mysterious recipient named Big Boss. However, without any way to meet him, the time just goes by in vain... This "docu-fiction" film is built from neo-noir settings featuring Hong Kong gangsters and femme fatales. The film is brilliantly directed by Wayne WANG, enhanced with the bustling beauty of Hong Kong in the late 1980s – several years before the return of Hong Kong to China with the political and ideological urgency of the situation interestingly expressed without hesitation. Produced in 1989, the film was distributed in Japan by EUROSPACE and released in theaters in July 1997 to coincide with the return of Hong Kong to China. The digital restoration conforms to the final cut made by director WANG himself in 2021. The original 35mm film was digitally restored in 4K resolution, with additional footage shot in Hong Kong in 1996.
Director：Wayne WANG
WANG was born and raised in Hong Kong and named after his father's favorite movie star, John WAYNE. At age 17, his parents arranged for him to move to the U.S., expecting him to attend medical school. Instead, he turned to the arts and studied film and television at Oakland's California College of Arts and Crafts. He established his reputation as a visionary director with "Chan is Missing," "Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart," and "Eat a Bowl of Tea" in the early 1980s. His best-known works are the mainstream "The Joy Luck Club" (1993) and “Maid in Manhattan (2002) as well as the independent features “Smoke" (1995) and “Anywhere but Here" (1999). His accolades include receipt of the 2007 Golden Shell at the San Sebastian Film Festival and a lifetime achievement award at the San Diego Asian Film Festival in 2016. He lives and works in San Francisco and New York.
Schedule
11/26（Sun）17:10 -
Yurakucho Asahi Hall