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Cinema

Cinema
Views, news, and reviews of films, from the latest releases to classic oldies.
last updated:
9 September, 2024
Jennifer Jones and William Holden in a still from Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955). The film, which is set in Hong Kong, won three Oscars and made an impressive US$4 million at the box office, but over the years its sheen has faded.
American cinema

Why Hong Kong-set Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing is plain offensive

It won three Oscars but the clunky 1955 movie casts Caucasians as Eurasians, features yellowface and had two leads who hated each other.

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American cinema

Michelle Yeoh on her ‘liberating’ role in Star Trek: Section 31

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Fame and celebrity

Emilia Perez film leads Oscar nominations with 13 – read the full list here

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

10 best Golden Princess films, including John Woo and Tsui Hark classics

A library of Hong Kong films, including the likes of A Chinese Ghost Story and Hard Boiled, has been bought – good news for fans overseas.

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Chow Yun-fat in a still from A Better Tomorrow (1986). Photo: Cinema City & Films
Asian cinema: Japanese films

Review | Happyend: dystopian surveillance in chilling Japanese high school drama

The debut feature from Japanese-American director Neo Sora, Happyend is a deft cocktail of teen angst and invasive technology.

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

How Swordsman, Tsui Hark’s wuxia film, started a new fantasy era

Tsui Hark’s 1990 Hong Kong film Swordsman was a long and rambling affair that was difficult to follow, yet it was a resounding success.

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Obituaries

Mulholland Drive and Twin Peaks director David Lynch dead at 78

Lynch was considered a master of surrealism and one of the most innovative filmmakers of his generation.

David Lynch appears at the Governors Awards in Los Angeles in October 2019. Photo: AP
American cinema

Review | Wolf Man, Leigh Whannell’s reboot of 1941 horror, is plain boring

A reboot, Leigh Whannell’s Wolf Man is momentarily intriguing – but a shallow story and zero thrills makes this film all bark and no bite.

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Asian cinema: Korean films

Review | K-Family Affairs: how a family endured 30 years of Korean political turmoil

Nam A-rum’s documentary is an intimate study of her family, her civil servant father and former activist mother, told through home movies.

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Asian cinema: Japanese films

Explainer | All you need to know before watching Attack on Titan: The Last Attack

As the finale of Hajime Isayama’s anime series opens in Hong Kong, a reminder of its plot, the controversies and why it is special.

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A still from Attack on Titan: The Last Attack.
American cinema

What Elton John film Never Too Late revealed to singer about his life

‘It brought back the struggle I had with success’, and how ‘it’s never too late to change,’ singer says of Disney+ documentary.

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Elton John performs at the White House in Washington in 2022. A new documentary, Never Too Late, celebrates his 50-plus years on stage, and his life. Photo: AP
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Twilight of the Warriors named the best Hong Kong film of 2024 by critics

Director Soi Cheang Pou-soi scores third win in four years for martial arts drama set in Kowloon Walled City; Papa wins two major awards.

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Sammo Hung plays his and Jackie Chan’s schoolmaster in Painted Faces

1988 Hong Kong film follows Yu Jim-yuen, the master of the Peking opera school in Kowloon whose pupils included Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung.

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Hong Kong cinema

Can Hong Kong films top the successes of 2024 this year?

Academic Kenny Ng believes industry can continue to reinvent itself and build on momentum to produce wave of ‘human-centric’ films.

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Actors Louis Koo (left) and Raymond Lam Fung in Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In. Photo: Handout
American cinema

Pamela Anderson, star of The Last Showgirl, on being accepted as an artist

‘Who would have thought this would be the beginning of my career at 57 years old?’ Pamela Anderson, of Baywatch fame, is entering a new era.

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Pamela Anderson in a scene from The Last Showgirl. Anderson, of Baywatch fame, has lived many a life over the decades. Photo: AP
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Review | Remember What I Forgot: nostalgic tale of a Hong Kong cinema geek

Philip Keung and Fish Liew star in Keian Chui’s directorial debut that indulges the audience with memories of Hong Kong cinema.

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Asian cinema: Korean films

Exhuma, Twilight of the Warriors lead Asian Film Awards nominations

Both movies are up for best picture at the 18th Asian Film Awards, as are All We Imagine as Light, Black Dog and Teki Cometh.

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American cinema

Before Sunrise at 30: why Richard Linklater’s movie is so magical

Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy star in this 1995 tale of strangers who meet on a train and spend a romantic evening in Vienna.

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Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in a still from Before Sunrise, directed by Richard Linklater, which turns 30 in January 2025.
European cinema

Lauded migrant actor in France who faced deportation gets work permit

Abou Sangare, an undocumented migrant who won a best actor award at the Cannes Film Festival, gains French work permit … as a mechanic.

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Review | Burning Blood: stars of Young and Dangerous back for awful police thriller

Jerry Lamb, Jason Chu, Jordan Chan and Michael Tse reunite in Wilson Chin’s posthumous final film that is just as bad as his others.

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Fame and celebrity

Who is Ines Rau, Kylian Mbappé’s rumoured trans Playboy model ex?

Of French-Algerian descent, martial arts enthusiast Ines Rau transitioned at 16, inspired by trailblazing transgender star Tula of Bond Girl fame ... now, her ascent to celebrity seems unstoppable.

Meet Ines Rau, the trans Playboy centrefold model who may’ve dated Kylian Mbappé. Photos: @supa_ines, @k.mbappe/Instagram
Asian cinema: Korean films

Best movie roles of Squid Game season 2’s new players

Do they look familiar? From Park Sung-hoon to Kang Ha-neul, we look at films new Squid Game actors were in before entering the deadly arena.

Kang Ha-neul as Kang Dae-ho, or player #388, in a still from Squid Game season 2. The actor is among those in the new series with impressive portfolios. Photo: Netflix
American cinema

What comeback? The Substance director hails Demi Moore after Golden Globe

Coralie Fargeat says Moore ‘always delivered pretty great performances’, as talk turns to Oscar prospects of actress after Golden Globe win.

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Fame and celebrity

Zendaya and Tom Holland engaged, sources say, after her Globes ring display

When actress was seen wearing it at Golden Globes, the secret was out: Holland gave her a 5-carat diamond engagement ring from UK jeweller.

Hong Kong culture

Editorial | The death of Hong Kong’s film industry has been overplayed

Two Hong Kong productions in particular show there is a role for the local industry despite 2024 having the poorest box office take in 13 years.

A poster for The Last Dance is seen at the Emperor Theatre in Hong Kong’s Times Square. Photo: Antony Dickson
American cinema

The Brutalist, Emilia Perez and Shogun win big at Golden Globes

Musical Emilia Perez and drama The Brutalist win best film awards, TV’s Shogun has a great night, Baby Reindeer and Demi Moore win too.

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Cosmo Jarvis with fellow Shogun cast members and Golden Globen Globe winners Anna Sawai, Hiroyuki Sanada (second from right) and Tadanobu Asano. The series also won for best TV drama. Photo: Reuters
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

4 notable Monkey King adaptations in Hong Kong cinema. One stars Donnie Yen

We recall Journey to the West film adaptations, from Stephen Chow’s turn in the title role to one in which Donnie Yen plays the Monkey King.

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European cinema

Latest Wallace & Gromit movie’s creators on why it’s ‘a bit meta’

As Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl hits Netflix, its British creators talk technology and tying things together with a wicked penguin.

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