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San Francisco, CA – SFFILM has announced the lineup for the seventh annual Hong Kong Cinema series, September 29–October 1 at the New People Cinema (1746 Post Street), presented in association with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, San Francisco. This annual series of exciting new work from one of the world’s most important filmmaking hubs showcases Hong Kong’s range of cinematic storytelling with contributions from both internationally known masters as well as up-and-coming filmmaking talents.
“Along with the terrific action, horror, and romantic fare the region is known for, it’s interesting to note that social issues, whether historical or current, take greater prominence in this seventh edition of the program,” said SFFILM’s Senior Programmer Rod Armstrong. “Behind the camera, masterful returning filmmakers like Ann Hui, Herman Yau, and Pang Ho-cheung take their honored places alongside up-and-coming directors Lawrence Lau, Derek Hui, and Wong Kwok-kuen.”
Hong Kong Cinema continues the Bay Area’s celebration of work from one of the most exciting eastern filmmaking centers and renews its tradition of offering a wild mix of genres and iconic performances from the region's biggest stars. This year, SFFILM is excited to present a program celebrating the remarkable thematic diversity of this important filmmaking center. From action-packed period pieces about reformed drug dealers to a debuting filmmaker's exposé of the juvenile detention system to Pang Ho-cheung's finale to his Love trilogy, the work reflects a wide range of genres and styles. The series also features two films by one of Hong Kong's most important directors, Ann Hui, presenting her most recent work, the highly lauded Our Time Will Come, alongside her early classic Boat People.
For complete program information visit sffilm.org/presents
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 29
6:15 pm – Opening Night: Our Time Will Come
Ann Hui (Hong Kong/China, 2017, 130 min)
Producer Roger Lee expected to attend
Ann Hui's moving and suspenseful drama showcases the heroic activities undertaken by resistance fighters during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong from 1941–44 focusing on a young teacher who is recruited to help the cause by a charismatic leader from the underground. The film features an impressive international cast, including Zhou Xun, Eddie Peng, and Deanie Ip, while the story presses home the importance of remembering one's history and the heroism of everyday people.
9:15 pm – Dealer/Healer
Lawrence Lau (Hong Kong, 2017, 101 min)
Set in the 1970s and early ‘80s, Lawrence Lau’s action-packed crime saga tells the true story of a reformed drug dealer who struggles for redemption from his perilous past. Moving like a high-speed freight train and directed with period flair and zest, Dealer/Healer boasts a compelling performance by Sean Lau who conveys the complex trajectory of Hua's life with nuance and style.
SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 30
1:30 pm – Our Time Will Come
Ann Hui (Hong Kong/China, 2017, 130 min)
Producer Roger Lee expected to attend
Hong Kong Cinema will offer Bay Area audiences a second chance to see the Opening Night feature and participate in a Q&A session with producer Roger Lee.
4:30 pm – 77 Heartbreaks
Herman Yau (Hong Kong, 2017, 93 min)
In the wake of his girlfriend Eva’s sudden departure from the apartment they share, shallow kickboxing teacher Adam finds her journal, which catalogs his various transgressions as depicted in flashbacks. With insight and humor throughout, 77 Heartbreaks shows how an emotionally immature man attempts to become a better person, and how a woman who has learned several things about what she does not want in a partner can move forward out of heartbreak and leave herself open to romantic possibility.
7:00 pm – This Is Not What I Expected
Derek Hui (China, 2017, 107 min)
In Derek Hui’s rom-com, an aspiring female chef (Zhou Dongyu) finds that the way to the heart of a reserved Japanese CEO (Takeshi Kaneshiro at his most dashing) is through his stomach. Following the pair through several twists and turns, this mouth-watering debut feature—a box-office hit in China since its release in April—is a delightful portrait of how opposites attract.
9:30 pm – The Sleep Curse
Herman Yau (Hong Kong, 2017, 102 min)
Replete with mad scientists, cannibalistic insomniacs, and war criminals, not to mention Anthony Wong in a dual role, The Sleep Curse offers midnight-movie flare turned up to 11. When a woman visits an egotistical sleep-disorder specialist about a mysterious sickness afflicting her brother, the doctor must in turn seek help from a medium to uncover the origin of the malady that has its roots in the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during WWII.
SUNDAY OCTOBER 1
2:30 pm – Boat People
Ann Hui (Hong Kong, 1982, 110 min)
Winner of five Hong Kong Film Awards—including Best Picture—and considered one of the best Chinese language films of all time, Boat People details the experiences of a Japanese photojournalist, Shiomi Akutagawa (George Lam), who is sent to Vietnam after the war to document life under the Communist government and its "new economic zones." Hui's immensely moving drama features Andy Lau and Cora Miao in memorable supporting roles.
5:00 pm – With Prisoners
Wong Kwok-kuen (Hong Kong, 2016, 100 min)
A stirring exposé of Hong Kong's juvenile justice system, With Prisoners uses real events—and casts several former offenders—to dramatize an institutional structure in need of reform. Fan is working security when he gets into a fight with an off-duty cop and is sent to a three-month program where he encounters sadistic guards and inhumane treatment. The suspicious death of one of the juveniles throws the system's grave problems into relief and forces difficult decisions for Fan and his fellow inmates.
7:30 pm – Love Off the Cuff
Pang Ho-cheung (Hong Kong, 2017, 120 min)
Pang Ho-cheung's finale to his Love trilogy depicts Jimmy and Cherie at a pivotal stage in their relationship—where living together, rather than cementing their connection, instead brings personal idiosyncrasies to the fore. In the central roles, Miriam Yeung and Shawn Yue continue to display their irresistible chemistry and are supported by a stream of amusing and noteworthy cameos while the film itself, with musical numbers and an opening fantasy sequence, mixes genres and styles to extremely entertaining ends.
Film tickets are $13 for SFFILM members, $15 general, $14 seniors, students, and persons with disabilities; box office now open online at sffilm.org.
Hong Kong Cinema is presented in partnership with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, San Francisco. The series receives special support from Penelope Wong and Tim Kochis and SFFILM Lead Sponsor, First Republic Bank.
For general information visit sffilm.org
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Chatelin Bruno 
