Long considered one of the Hong Kong New Wave's landmarks, this 1982 film presents a convergence point for the city's most gifted artists of the era. It vividly brings Patrick Tam Ka-ming's Godardian influences - experiments in framing and montages, a story about youthful ennui and revolution - to the screen with an intriguing script (co-penned by, among others, Joyce Chan, Eddie Fong, John Chan and Tam himself), a dazzling production design by William Chang and John Hau, cinematography by Bill Wong and a jarring musical score by Violet Lam.
That's not to mention the mesmerising performances by Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing, Cecilia Yip Tung, Pat Ha Man-chik and Kent Tong Chun-yip. Their turns as socially inert yet sexually active individuals from various socio-economic backgrounds highlight how the new generation of the day languished in an amoral, apolitical universe. Meanwhile, the city confronts an uncertain future (this is before the Sino-British agreements over 1997) and cultural battles (as seen in the pre-eminence of artefacts of Japanese popular culture in the film). A must-see.
Nomad, July 31, 9pm; Sept 3, 7.30pm, Hong Kong Film Archive, 50 Lei King Road, Sai Wan Ho.
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