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Film Review: Center Stage 阮玲玉 (1991) - Hong Kong [HKIFF45] Reviewed as part of 45th Hong Kong International Film Festival 2021 by Andrew Chan (Film Critics Circle of Australia) Help me reach one review per day in 2021. 2021 Review count - 17/365 Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/neofilmreviews   Based in on the tragic yet inspiring life of the beautiful and talented 1930s Shanghainese actress Ruan Lingyu. In creating and directing this masterpiece epic running at over two and half hours, Stanley Kwan at 33 years of age made his possibly the most perfect film and thus cemented Maggie Cheung as a...

  Filmmaker in Focus Stanley Kwan - Face to Face [HKIFF45] Reviewed as part of 45th Hong Kong International Film Festival 2021 by Andrew Chan (Film Critics Circle of Australia) Help me reach one review per day in 2021. 2021 Review count - 16/365 Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/neofilmreviews   Being one of the standout directors of our generation with an expertise in directing women roles that creates multi dimensional characters, Stanley Kwan have graced our screens with plenty of all time classics. The epic masterpiece “Center Stage” was created at only 33 years old and directing 26 year old Maggie...

Film Review: Undine (2020)- Germany / France [HKIFF45] Reviewed as part of 45th Hong Kong International Film Festival 2021 by Andrew Chan (Film Critics Circle of Australia) Help me reach one review per day in 2021. 2021 Review count - 16/365 Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/neofilmreviews   There is a lot of problems with Silver Bear winning director of “Barbara” - Christian Petzold’s latest work “Undine”. As the title suggest, the film involves frequent water sequences and allergy on water and diving. At the journey, “Undine” remains one of Petzold’s much lesser work as it is rather pointless and the happenings...

Film Review: Love Unto Waste 地下情 (1986) - Hong Kong [HKIFF45] Reviewed as part of 45th Hong Kong International Film Festival 2021 by Andrew Chan (Film Critics Circle of Australia) Help me reach one review per day in 2021. 2021 Review count - 14/365 Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/neofilmreviews   Coming out a year before the more acclaimed “Rouge”, director Stanley Kwan created a coming of age tragic romance in the highly underrated “Love Unto Waste”. Despite starring an now rated all-star cast in Tony Leung Chiu Wai and Irene Wan in leading roles, the film also is well supported by Chow Yun...

Film Review: Rouge 胭脂扣 (1987) - Hong Kong [HKIFF45] Reviewed as part of 45th Hong Kong International Film Festival 2021 by Andrew Chan (Film Critics Circle of Australia) Help me reach one review per day in 2021. 2021 Review count - 15/365 Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/neofilmreviews   Remastered in 4K, “Rouge” gets a world premiere re-release at the 45th Hong Kong International Film Festival 2021 as part of Stanley Kwan’s filmmaker in focus. Starring two of Hong Kong most beloved superstars and late icons, Leslie Cheung and Anita Mui (in one of her greatest performances), it is both fitting and emotional as...