Local hk movies box office so far - aug 2012

No1: Love in the Buff - 27.9 million
No2. A Simple life - 27.6 million
No3. The Viral Factor 22.2million
No4. I Love HK 2012 19.1 million
No5. Nightfall 17.6 million
No6. Motorway 14.7 million
No7. Alls Well Ends Well 2012 12 million
No8. Painted Skin 2 9.1 million
No9. Romancing in Thin Air 8.9 million
No10. The Great Magican 6.8 million

With 2 decent sized local releases this week : Pang Ho Cheung's Vulgaria and Felix Chong/Alan Mak's The Silent War starring Tony Leung Chiu Wai, it's likely "The Great Magican" will leave the top ten.

Motorway

Decent tight actioner for Soi Cheang, who directed the superior and unrated "Accident"
Pretty standard cops and robbers, mentor/teacher plot which serves as cipher for the hi octane car chases.
Fortunately it's not all CGI driving in the Intial D style and alot of fun is derived from bare bones plot. However, even with a short running time of 90 mins, there is still a superfluous character in Barbie Hsu's hottie doctor. She has 3 scenes in the movie which could either be cut out or in the crucial middle scene, be replaced by an anoymous actor and the film wouldn't suffer but in fact be improved, as it would be punchier and wouldn't have the distraction of thinking "Isn't she too young to be a surgeon"?

But the film is certainly good fun and the action is pretty effective. Worth checking out.

Belated HK Film Award Results

Best Picture: A Simple Life
Best Actor: Andy Lau - A Simple Life
Best Actress: Deanie Yip - A Simple Life
Best Director: Ann Hui - A Simple Life
Best Screenplay: Susan Chan - A Simple Life
Best Supporting Actor: Lo Hoi Pang - Life Without Principle
Best Supporting Actress: Soh Hang Shuen - Life Without Principle
Best Newcomer: Hsiao Ching Teng - The Killer Who Never Kills
Best Cinematopgraphy: Derek Hui - Wu Xia
Best Art Director: Yee Chung Man, Lau Man Hung - Flying Swords of Dragon Gate
Best Costume and Makeup Design : William Chang - Let the Bullets Fly
Best Action Choreography: Yuen Bun, Lan Hai Han, Sun Jiankui - Flying Swords of Dragon Gate
Best Original Score: Chan Kwong, Peter Kam, Chatchai Pongprapaphan - Wu Xia
Best Original Song: Leung Sum Fa - Hi Fidelity
Best Sound Effects : Kim Suk Won - Flying Swords of Dragon Gate
Best Visual Effects: Wook Kim, Josh Cole, Frankie Chung - Flying Swords of Dragon Gate
Best New Director: Tsang Tsui Shan - The Big Blue Lake
Best Chnese Film : You are the Apple of My Eye
Professional Achivement Award: Fong Ho Yuen (stills photographer)
Lifetime Achievement Award: Ni Kuang (screenwriter)

No real surprises in the main categories this year.4 Awards for "Flying Swords", but mainly for the technical prizes. It was the 2nd biggest winner after "A Simple Life" which took 5. It was a night for the veterans with the supporting actor awards dominating the wins and the nominations. It seemed like the industry was keen to award the supporting actors that night as it was unlikely they would be likely to be in this position again.

Hong kong film award nominations 2012

The nominanations are out with the ceremony to take place on April 15.
Not sure what all the love is for 'flying swords of dragon gate' and 'life without principle'. Lau Ching Wan was good in it but the whole film is a bit of a mess. Best screenplay? Surely not.
Also really annoying that 'a simple life' still isn't released in hong kong yet. It's been an age since Venice and its won big at the golden horse yet it still isn't out here for a month.

Best picture
Flying swords of dragon gate
Let the bullets fly
life without principle
Overheard 2
A simple life

Best director
Tsui hark : flying swords of dragon gate
Jiang wen : let the bullets fly
Johnnie to : life without principle
Alan mak, Felix chong : overheard 2
Ann hui: a simple life

Best actor
Ge you : let the bullets fly
Jiang wen : let the bullets fly
Lau Ching wan : life without principle & overheard 2
Andy lau : a simple life

Best actress
Gao yuan yuan : don't go breaking my heart
Shu qi : a beautiful life
Tang Wei : Wu xia
Deannie yip : a simple life
Zhou xun : flying swords of dragon gate

Best supporting actor
Paul chun pui : a simple life
Lo hoi pang : life without principle
Kenneth tsang : overheard 2
Nicholas tse : shaolin
Jimmy Wang yu : Wu xia

Best supporting actress
Guey lun mei : flying swords of dragon gate
Kara hui ting hung : Wu xia
Carina lau : let the bullets fly
Qin haiku : a simple life
So hang seen : life without principle

Best screenplay
Don't go breaking my heart
Let the bullets fly
Life without principle
Overheard
A simple life

Best new artist
Jam Shias : the killer who never kills
Shang chien : flying swords of dragon gate
Shiga Lin si nga: Lan Kwai Fong
Karena ng : magic to win
Zheng Shang : Mural

Best cinematography
Flying swords of dragon gate
Let the bullets fly
Overheard 2
A simple life
Wu xia

Best editing
Flying swords of dragon gate
Let the bullets fly
Overheard 2
Life without principle
Wu xia

Best art direction
Flying swords of dragon gate
Let the bullets fly
Shaolin
White vengeance
Wu xia

Best costume design and makeup
Flying swords of dragon gate
Let the bullets fly
Mural
White vengeance
Wu xia

Best action choreography
Yuen bun, sun jian kui, Allen Lan Han Han : flying swords of dragon gate
Li Chung chi, Allen sit chun wai : let the bullets fly
Corey yuen Kwai, yuen tak, li chun chi : shaolin
Ching Siu tung : the sorcerer and the white snake
Donne yen : Wu xia

Best score
A beautiful life
Flying swords of dragon gate
Overheard 2
White vengeance
Wu xia

Best song
A beautiful life : ivana Wong
Hi fidelity : sandy lam
Life without principle
Shaolin: andy lau
Wu xia : duo Wei

Best sound design
Flying swords of dragon gate
Let the bullets fly
Overheard 2
White vengeance
Wu xia

Best visual effects
Flying swords of dragon gate
Let the bullets fly
Mural
The sorcerer and the white snake
Wu xia

Best Chinese film (china/Taiwan)
The flowers of war
If you are the one 2
Starry starry night
Warriors of the rainbow : seediq bale
You are the apple of my eye

Best new director
Calvin poon : hi fidelity
Jessy tsang: blue big lake
Bill yip : cure

Chinese new year movies supplement

Two extra new year movies

I love hk 2012 - the new installment from tvb/shaws with a host of tv actors. These series of films started a few years back with the updated 72 tenants movies, 72 tenants of prosperity, or something clunky like that. I'm expecting it to be forgettable fluff

All well ends well 2012 - Raymond wong's sausage factory churns out another new year comedy with Louis koo and Donne yen. See above for fluff reference.

Top ten biggest grossing hk films so far

Disclaimer: this is for hk films only so does not include 'you are the apple of my eye' from Taiwan, which destroys everything on this list with 60 million Hk dollars

1. 3d sex and zen : extreme ecstasy 41 million
2. I love hk 26.5 million
3. Overheard 2 23.5 million
4. Shaolin 20.5 million
5. All's well ends well 2011 20 million
6. Don't go breaking my heart 12 million
7. Life without principle 8.5 million
8. Mr and mrs incredible 8 million
9. The lost bladesman 8 million
10 Wu xia 8 million
11. Lan Kwai fong 8 million

Other grosses of note, Bollywood movie '3 idiots' has made over 21 million and counting which I'm sure will lead to a number of Bollywood releases next year. Which is significant and next to no Bollywood movies has had a general release prior.

Chinese new year movies

One month to go before Chinese new year and here's what's on offer.

'romancing in thin air' johnnies to romantic flick with Louis koo and sammi cheng. No andy lau this time and I just can't seem to get excited about this one. Johhnie to just needs Anthony Wong and some guns and I'm in. No more movies about hi risk investments please.

'the viral factor' directed by Dante lam with Nicholas tse and jay chow. Now I have a lot of love for Dante on the goodwill of 'beast cops' but he hasn't given me much love in return. I'm hoping he will turn his career around much like Wilson yip when he wowed me with 'bullets over summer' and 'Juliet in love'. A couple of mis steps with 'skyline crusiers' but did the amazing'spl but gave us the appalling 'Sargon tiger gate' but his career is going swimmingly. But I distress, this pic looks a bit late 90s and reminds me of those media Asia puddings like 'purple storm'. Leaves me a bit cold but hey, you never know.

'the great magican' directed by Derek yee with tony Leung chui wai and lau Ching wan. Lau dressed like the warlord character from the old shaws movie with Michael hui and tony doing the David copperfield role. Looks all a bit silly. But... Could be like 'Peking opera blues' but I doubt it.

'the flowers of war' - does this count? China's bid for the foreign language Oscar directed by zhang yimou and starring christian bale. It's about the Nanking massacre and looks bloody awful. Dubious pilot about convent girls and prostitutes sacrificing themselves for the girl's virtue or something like that. Not quite sure but I'm not keen, not in the slightlist.

And think those are all the Chinese movies out for CNY, the tvb/shaws entry, turning point 2, came out yesterday.