Made in Hong Kong Film Festival Takes a Look at Movies Made After the Transfer to China

Freer and Sackler Galleries’ 22nd Annual Film Festival To Include U.S. Premiere of 4K Digital Restoration of Landmark 1997 Film “Made in Hong Kong”
July 5, 2017
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Chinese poster for film "Mad World"

The 22nd annual Made in Hong Kong Film Festival, cosponsored by the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, features some of the most talked-about recent films out of Hong Kong. This year’s festival, running from July 14 through Aug. 6, kicks off its opening weekend with director Wong Chun and screenwriter Florence Chan introducing their film Mad World at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History Warner Bros. Theater.

The award-winning drama, Mad World, centers on a former stockbroker (Shawn Yue) who is released into the custody of his father (Eric Tsang) after being institutionalized for bipolar disorder. A “brave piece of filmmaking” (Edmund Lee, South China Morning Post), Mad World explores many issues facing Hong Kongers today, from the harsh living conditions of the poor to the immense pressure to succeed in business.

All films will be screened at the National Museum of American History’s Warner Bros. Theater at 14th Street and Constitution Avenue N.W. (americanhistory.si.edu/visit/getting-here). The Made in Hong Kong Film Festival is free and open to the public. Admission is first come, first served. Auditorium doors open 30 minutes before show time. Visit freersackler.si.edu/films for full descriptions, schedule updates and admission policies.

This year’s lineup is:

Mad World, Friday, July 14; 7 p.m. A former stockbroker is released into the custody of his father after being institutionalized for bipolar disorder. Directed by Wong Chun, Hong Kong, 2016, 101 min., DCP, Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles.

Trivisa, Sunday, July 16; 1 p.m. Based on the lives of real Hong Kong gangsters, Trivisa portrays three tales of criminal derring-do played out against the backdrop of the 1997 British transfer of Hong Kong to China. Directed by Jevons Au, Vicky Wong Kai-Kit and Frank Hui, Hong Kong, 2016, 97 min., DCP, Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles.

Vampire Cleanup Department, Sunday, July 16; 3:30 p.m. A mild-mannered millennial discovers he is part of a centuries-old organization of vampire hunters, now working undercover as trash collectors. What happens when he falls in love with a particularly cute bloodsucker named Summer? Directed by Hang Chiu and Anthony Yan, Hong Kong, 2017, 93 min., DCP, Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles.

Three, Sunday, July 23; 1 p.m. This thriller takes place in a hospital, where a neurosurgeon must treat a gangster with a bullet lodged in his head. The hospitalized criminal may have incriminating information on the ruthless cop who brought him in. Directed by Johnnie To, Hong Kong, 2016, 98 min., DCP, Cantonese with English subtitles.

Mrs. K, Sunday, July 23; 3:30 p.m. International film star Kara Wai plays a retired assassin now living comfortably as a housewife. When her past comes back to haunt her, she dusts off her martial arts skills to dispatch a parade of baddies. Directed by Ho Yuhang, Malaysia/Hong Kong, 2016, 97 min., DCP, Cantonese, Mandarin and Malay with Chinese and English subtitles.

Soul Mate, Sunday, July 30; 2 p.m. Actors Zhou Dongyu and Ma Sichun deliver intense performances as high school friends who fall in love with the same boy. Years later, old wounds are reopened when one of them publishes a novel based on their lives. Directed by Derek Tsang, China, 2016, 110 min., DCP, Mandarin with Chinese and English subtitles.

The final weekend of the festival features three classic films made after Hong Kong’s transfer from Great Britain to China in 1997:

Kung Fu Hustle, Friday, Aug. 4; 7 p.m. Featuring a cast of legendary Hong Kong action stars, this film pits the ragtag denizens of a rundown slum against the ruthless Axe Gang. A nonstop series of action sequences is fueled by outrageous special effects. Directed by Stephen Chow, Hong Kong, 2004, 99 min., 35mm, Cantonese and Mandarin with English subtitles.

Beast Cops, Sunday, Aug. 6; 1 p.m. Famed for its final fight scene, Beast Cops is credited with breathing new life into the cops versus triads genre. Anthony Wong stars as a corrupt cop forced to work under a new straitlaced boss. Directed by Gordon Chan and Dante Lam, Hong Kong, 1998, 110 min., DCP, Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles.

Made in Hong Kong, Sunday, Aug. 6; 3:30 p.m. The first independent Hong Kong film made after the 1997 British transfer to China, this “intoxicating drama about teenage alienation” (BBC) depicts a rarely seen view of the city. Presented in a 4K digital restoration created by the Udine Far East Film Festival under the supervision of director Fruit Chan. Hong Kong, 1997, 109 min., DCP, Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles. A special press kit for Made in Hong Kong is available to the media upon request.

About the Freer and Sackler Galleries

The Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art and the adjacent Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., together comprise the nation’s museums of Asian art. It contains one of the most important collections of Asian art in the world, featuring more than 40,000 objects ranging in time from the Neolithic to the present day, with especially fine groupings of Islamic art, Chinese jades, bronzes and paintings and the art of the ancient Near East. The galleries also contain important masterworks from Japan, ancient Egypt, South and Southeast Asia and Korea, as well as the Freer’s noted collection of works by American artist James McNeill Whistler.

The Freer|Sackler is a part of the Smithsonian Institute, the world’s largest museum, education and research complex, which is dedicated to the increase and diffusion of knowledge. 

About the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office

The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office is the permanent representative of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government. Its mission is to strengthen the economic, trade, investment and cultural ties between Hong Kong and the United States. 

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SI-375-2017

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Jennifer Mitchell

202-251-4892
mitchellja@si.edu