Hong Kong 1941
| Hong Kong 1941 | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 DVD cover | |||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 等待黎明 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 等待黎明 | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| Directed by | Po-Chih Leong | ||||||||||
| Written by | John Chan Sammo Hung[1] | ||||||||||
| Produced by | John Shum | ||||||||||
| Starring | Chow Yun-fat Cecilia Yip Alex Man | ||||||||||
| Cinematography | Brian Lai | ||||||||||
| Edited by | Peter Cheung | ||||||||||
| Music by | Violet Lam | ||||||||||
Production companies | |||||||||||
| Distributed by | Golden Harvest | ||||||||||
Release date |
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Running time | 100 minutes | ||||||||||
| Country | Hong Kong | ||||||||||
| Language | Cantonese | ||||||||||
| Box office | HK$7.22 million.[1] | ||||||||||
Hong Kong 1941 (Chinese: 等待黎明) is a 1984 Hong Kong war drama film directed by Po-Chih Leong, produced by John Shum and written by Sammo Hung. The film stars Chow Yun-fat, Cecilia Yip and Alex Man. For his performance in this film, Chow was awarded his first Golden Horse Award for Best Leading Actor.[2]
Synopsis
[edit]The film takes places shortly before and during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during World War II. The story of three young friends focuses on their sufferings as Hong Kong falls under oppressive occupation.
Years later, a woman narrates her personal story of the Japanese takeover of Hong Kong in 1941. She's Nam, young, attractive, daughter of a wealthy rice merchant, and prey to painful, disabling seizures. Her boyhood friend is Coolie Keung, whose family used to have wealth; he's now impoverished, a tough kid, a leader, in love with her. Into the mix steps Fei, cool and resourceful, an actor from the north, intent on getting to Gold Mountain in the US or Australia. They form a trio, but the day they are to leave Hong Kong, the invasion stops them. Fei must rescue Keung from collaborators, Nam falls in love with Fei, and danger awaits their next attempt to escape.
Filming locations
[edit]Yu Yuen (娛苑), a large residential building built in 1927 in Tung Tau Wai, Wang Chau, is featured in the film.[3]
Cast and roles
[edit]- Chow Yun-fat as Yip Kim-fei
- Cecilia Yip as Han Yuk-nam
- Alex Man as Wong Hak-keung
- Shih Kien as Ha Chung-sun, Nam's father
- Wu Ma as Chairman Liu Yan-mau
- Paul Chun as Fa Wing
- Ku Feng as Shui / Shiu
- Stuart Ong as General Kanezawa
- Billy Lau as Factory Foreman
- Angela Yu Chien as Fei's Aunt
- Chu Tau as Liu's men
- Chow Kam-kong Liu's man
- Po-Chih Leong as Emperor
- Chin Ka-lok (extra)
- Pang Yun-cheung (extra)
- Lee Chi-kit (extra)
Awards and nominations
[edit]| Awards | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ceremony | Category | Name | Outcome | |
| 22nd Golden Horse Awards | ||||
| Best Actor | Chow Yun-fat | Won | ||
| Alex Man | Nominated | |||
| 4th Hong Kong Film Awards | ||||
| Best Film | Hong Kong 1941 | Nominated | ||
| Best Director | Po-Chih Leong | Nominated | ||
| Best Screenplay | John Chan | Nominated | ||
| Best Actor | Chow Yun-fat | Nominated | ||
| Best Actress | Cecilia Yip | Nominated | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Angela Yu Chien | Nominated | ||
| Best Cinematography | Brian Lai | Won | ||
| Best Film Editing | Peter Cheung | Nominated | ||
References
[edit]- ^ a b Hong Kong Cinemagic: Hong Kong 1941 Archived 15 April 2023 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Hong Kong 1941 (1984) - LoveHKFilm.com".
- ^ Antiquities Advisory Board. Historic Building Appraisal: Yu Yuen, Tung Tau Wai Archived 14 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine
External links
[edit]- Hong Kong 1941 at IMDb
- Hong Kong 1941 at Rotten Tomatoes
- Hong Kong Cinemagic entry Archived 15 April 2023 at the Wayback Machine