FAHTHAI
21
Films in
focus
Get
reel
The Hong Kong
International Film
Festival marks its 38th
year inMarch. The line-
up features an eclectic
mix of American and
European films but, as
always, Asian cinema
takes centre stage
STOPOVER
film
B
oasting an exciting selection of over
200 titles covering a wide spectrum
of genres, this year’s Hong Kong
International Film Festival (HKIFF)
promises a visual feast for local and overseas
cinephiles. While the programme isn’t lacking in
Hollywood hits and European indies, it’s Asian
films and filmmakers that steal the spotlight.
Asia’s oldest international film festival, HKIFF
debuted in 1977 and has since become one of the
leading events of its kind in the region, as well as
a champion of Asian cinema. This year’s festival
has sections dedicated to the works of three Asian
auteurs: the late Japanese filmmaker Yasujiro
Ozu, Chinese actor-turned-director Jiang Wen
(
Let the Bullets Fly
, pictured top) and Iranian
Oscar winner Asghar Farhadi. Though their
styles differ markedly, the trio all share a passion
for exploring the social, cultural and political
environments of their respective homelands.
Hailed as one of world cinema’s leading lights,
Ozu (1903–1963) was famous for his exceptional
portrayals of the struggles of ordinary Japanese
families. The prolific writer-director skilfully
TEXT: PENELOPE ZHOU
straddled the line between drama and comedy,
and had the rare ability to turn the mundane
into a beautiful and touching kaleidoscope
of emotions. HKIFF’s year-round Cine Fan
programme featured five Ozu works in Hong
Kong last December to mark the 50th anniversary
of his death (he died on his 60th birthday).
Extending the tribute, the festival will screen a
quartet of representative colour films from the
latter part of his career:
Equinox Flower
(1958),
Good Morning
(1959),
Late Autumn
(above
right, 1960) and
An Autumn Afternoon
(1962).
Sharing a keen eye for domestic drama, Iranian
filmmaker Farhadi is best known for his 2011
tour de force
A Separation
(above left), about an
upper-middle-class Tehran couple whose divorce
spirals out of control. Screened at the 35th HKIFF,
the movie went on to win the Golden Globe and
Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film.
As the film was met with worldwide acclaim, it
also brought Iran and its people into focus. Despite
his struggles with the Tehran government over
its strict censorship policies, Farhadi manages to
offer acute insights into contemporary Iranian
➦
DIRECT FROM THE HEART
Two keen students of the
human condition, the films
of the late Yasujiro Ozu (left)
and Asghar Farhadi
—
both
spotlighted in this year's HKIFF
—
diverge greatly in style
