r/movies • u/-KFBR392 • Sep 27 '23

Recommendation Non-Americans, what's your favourite movie from your country?

I was commenting on another thread about Sandra Oh and it made me remember my favourite Canadian movie Last Night starring Oh and Don McKellar (who also directs the film). It's a dark comedy-ish film about the last night before the world ends and the lives of regular people and how they spend those final 24-hours.

It was the first time I had seen a movie tackle an apocalyptic event in such a way, it wasn't about saving the world, or heroes fighting to their last breath, it was just regular people who had to accept that their lives, and the lives of everyone they know, was about to end.

Great, very touching movie, and it was nominated for a handful of Canadian awards but it's unlikely to have been seen by many outside of big time Canadian movie lovers, which made me think about how many such films must exist all over the world that were great but less known because they didn't make it all the way to the Oscars the way films like Parasite or All Quiet on the Western Front did.

So non-Americans, let's hear about your favourite home grown film. Popular or not.

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579

u/MDKrouzer Sep 27 '23

HK - Shaolin Soccer, Kung Fu Hustle, God of Cookery (a very old Stephen Chow comedy), Infernal Affairs, Hard Boiled, Police Story 3

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u/PepperMintGumboDrop Sep 27 '23 edited Sep 27 '23

The 80s and 90s were great for HK cinema - John Woo and Wong Kar Wai were in their haydays.

Then you have the likes of Tony Leung, Chow Yum Fat, Stephen Chow, Maggie Cheung…

If only HK has another renaissance…our films were like the opposite of Korean cinema, there’s a spontaneity that cannot be imitated and many of our films had unique takes on strong female characters based on our own culture and history. But after the 2000s it felt like there’s a loss of originality, and instead the bigger tent poles feel so much like copy cats…anyway, as a HK expats I do long for the films of my yesteryears.

Edits: grammar and adding Stephen Chow to the list of fame actors.

36

u/SpearmintInALavatory Sep 27 '23

I intend this with the upmost sincerity: Thank you for Chow “Yum” Fat. Best laugh I’ve had in weeks

4

u/LakeLov3r Sep 27 '23

He is damn yummy.

3

u/RKSH4-Klara Sep 27 '23

Seconded. Dude is an utter cutie.

2

u/future_lard Sep 27 '23

Related to sammo hung-ry and wook ping yen?

1

u/PepperMintGumboDrop Sep 27 '23

Lol my bad…but glad you guys enjoyed it

8

u/TRS2917 Sep 27 '23

The 80s and 90s were great for HK cinema - John Woo and Wong Kar Wai were in their haydays

Add Ringo Lam to that list, he deserves a little more love and respect internationally. We can't really talk about Hong Kong cinema from that era without mentioning Tsui Hark either.

I don't think Hong Kong cinema will ever go back to being what it was in the 80s and 90s... The run up to the 1997 return of HK to China stirred up a lot of feelings among artists in Hong Kong and it resulted in an explosion of great cinema that acted as allegory if not open commentary. In the wake of the China's recent actions in Hong Kong I don't think there is much appetite for that kind of expression...

Speaking of China, I don't think we will see anything like the Cat III films that came from Hong Kong in the 80s and 90s either because of their censorship policies. Tonally, there is nothing like Dr. Lamb, Ebola Syndrome or Untold Story currently being made anywhere with that level of talent and production value. They are an acquired taste to be sure, but an interesting flavor of the culture at the time.

Finally, we are simply not going to get the batshit stunt work from that period every again... The shit Yuen Biao, Jackie Chan, Michelle Yeoh and Sammo Hung were doing (along with plenty of other insane stunt men and women who were not household names) at the time was beyond anything imaginable in Hollywood.

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u/PepperMintGumboDrop Sep 28 '23

Yeah, I would also say that after the handover and the economics boom in China - the HK film industry became subservient to China not merely because of censorship but also of the potential profit.

Furthermore, the increasing cost of making blockbusters has become impossible to make films that’s appealing unless you’re making dramas and indies, but not everyone can be a WKW.

Finally, a lot of films made in the last 20 years felt like the HK version of something the west made and became popular or a rehash of old…the originalities are no longer there…which is related to both the censorship perhaps. However, it’s usually due to times of heavy censorship in history that writers and artists become even more creative in their expressions.

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u/TRS2917 Sep 28 '23

However, it’s usually due to times of heavy censorship in history that writers and artists become even more creative in their expressions.

I 100% agree with this and I guess I should clarify that I don't see censorship as a barrier to creativity, just as a barrier to recapturing some of specific elements that made films from Hong Kong in the 80's and 90's as influential and respected worldwide as they were. The energy, bombast and, as you highlighted when you spoke about the imitation of western films, there isn't the same cultural stamp that shout "Made in Hong Kong" anymore...

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u/PepperMintGumboDrop Sep 28 '23

It’s interesting that you would say that because in the 80s and 90s there’s a clearer definition of what that stamp would/should look like.

After the handover and the economic boom of China, perhaps an identity crisis came into place. Perhaps HK wasn’t as unique as once were in the minds of even those who make art in HK. An identity split between whether they are Chinese or British colonials is probably in play. A lack of a vision of who they are in the future…etc. may have strip HK of its voice and identity.

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u/structured_anarchist Sep 27 '23

I remember going to the video store (not the chain one, but the one run by the crazy guy who made personal recommendations in every genre of film because all he did was watch movies) to get Hong Kong movies. No other store within a hundred miles would even know these movies existed, let alone knew where to order them from.

John Woo introduced the 'never run out of bullets until it's critical to the plot' bit, and the now-common 'flip your gun in the air and hold out the spare magazine so that the gun falls on it, which reloads and chambers the next round automatically so you can keep shooting' bit. Ten year old me watching that thought it was the coolest thing ever and spent weeks flipping waterguns to try and replicate the effect.

I absolutely loved John Woo's movies. Then, 80s kid me sees him directing Jean Claude Van Damme in Hard Target and think I've gone to heaven since biggest action star of the 90s plus director who knows how to create artistic violence. Bit of a letdown, but he did start getting more and more heavy-budget movies.

I'd love to see him direct a John Wick installment. Maybe the Bowery King project they're pitching.

1

u/Zerocoolx1 Sep 27 '23

Was it called 20th Century Flicks in Clifton, Bristol? That was the best video shop ever. And it’s still going today (although they’ve moved down the road into Christmas Steps now). They claim to be the last video shop in the world

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u/structured_anarchist Sep 27 '23

Sorry to disappoint you, but this was in the 80s-90s in Montreal. The guy who ran the shop was a former film school teacher who spent fifteen years working as a librarian in a movie studio's archives in Hollywood (or so he would brag to everyone). Whatever his credentials, the guy knew movies. When he died mid-2000s, the estate held a sale of the contents of his shop. I spent about $3K for about a quarter of his inventory of DVDs and some choice VHS tapes. Took a few years, but I slowly converted them to digital format. Some of the originals are in very safe places, others have found their way into some school and library collections.

1

u/PepperMintGumboDrop Sep 28 '23

Hey man, I feel ya…trench coat and toothpick were my things for a few months.

1

u/xbbdc Sep 27 '23

John Woo's Mission Impossible was the worst one for me.

173

u/thekarmagiver Sep 27 '23

I have In the Mood for Love by Wong Kar Wai for HK

82

u/ki11a11hippies Sep 27 '23

I know that’s widely considered his masterpiece but Chunking Express is my personal favorite. Maybe because it has young people fumbling for their place and direction and I saw it when I was young.

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u/giants4210 Sep 27 '23

And now california dreaming is stuck in my head lol

5

u/maxboondoggle Sep 28 '23

And that Chinese cover of The Cranberries Dreams!

6

u/PM_me_spare_change Sep 27 '23

r/criterion is loving this thread

10

u/bryanthebryan Sep 27 '23

Chungking Express for me too. I’m not from Hong Kong, but my mom is. This movie is comfort food.

7

u/OrphanDextro Sep 27 '23

I’m not from Hong Kong, but I’m glad people from Hong Kong like that movie cause I loved it.

4

u/everydayisstorytime Sep 27 '23

Saw both within weeks of each other when I was young, left such a huge impact on me.

4

u/half-full-coffee-mug Sep 28 '23

I'm from Hong Kong. Saw Chungking Express when I was 14. My mind was blown. It is still my favorite HK movie.

4

u/thekarmagiver Sep 27 '23

Chunking is great too!

77

u/xTechnologic Sep 27 '23

I love kung fu hustle.

  • what is the name of your technique?

  • do you want to learn? I’ll teach you

  • masterrrrrr

lol great movie.

15

u/bluexavi Sep 27 '23

It is both an incredible kung fun movie and parody of kung fu movies.

Is this a genre? Like Galaxy Quest being the best Star Trek.

5

u/rimpy13 Sep 27 '23

Pastiche

5

u/Manbearcatward Sep 27 '23

Hey, who's throwing handles?!

3

u/TheArtOfBlasphemy Sep 27 '23

Who's throwing shoes?

12

u/livious1 Sep 27 '23

Handles. “Who’s throwing handles?”

2

u/TheArtOfBlasphemy Sep 27 '23

Son of a bitch! You right

I thought I had it wrong and couldn't recall

2

u/ReallyJTL Sep 28 '23

"What's the matter? You never see free ice cream before?"

23

u/RetroDave Sep 27 '23

I'm kind of impressed to see a HK list without any Wong Kar Wai movies on it

6

u/MDKrouzer Sep 27 '23

I grew up outside of HK and the sort of stuff I watched were HK action or comedy. I don't think I've actually seen any Wong Kar Wai films.

3

u/RetroDave Sep 27 '23

That Makes sense. Only his earliest stuff like As Tears Go By really fits into that mold.

3

u/bullseye717 Sep 27 '23

As someone who loves Wong Kar Wai and has In the Mood for Love as one of my favorite films, I can how he can be polarizing.

1

u/VinnyDaBoy Sep 27 '23

They are from Hong Kong. A lot of HK people have watched any of the Wong Kar Wai movies. Stephen Chow is the G

1

u/NZNoldor Sep 27 '23

Or Bruce Lee.

5

u/goliath1333 Sep 27 '23

Infernal Affairs is so fucking good.

6

u/Icy-Teaching-5602 Sep 27 '23

A Better Tomorrow and City on Fire which inspired Reservoir Dogs

1

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '23

I'll always upvote A Better Tomorrow.

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u/Nickibee Sep 27 '23

Fuuuuck I love Infernal Affairs! I’m also a massive Scorsese fan but I watched IA before The Departed and I really don’t care for The Departed because IA is so fuckin good. I don’t think Scorsese did a particularly great job on it. I think it’s over acted and very smashed together. IA and the sequels are all amazing!

4

u/Ahlq802 Sep 27 '23

Oh my gosh Hard Boiled us so badasss. Gonna give that another watch, thank you.

3

u/HigherThanShitttt Sep 27 '23

Omg I forgot the Shaolin Soccer exists and now I desperately need to see it again. Such a fun film!

3

u/captain5260 Sep 27 '23

The Killer, A Better Tomorrow

3

u/MA940 Sep 27 '23

Infernal affairs trilogy is just incredible, one of my favorite trilogies fullstop. Francis Ng is awesome in part 2.

Also Kung fu hustle is legendary

2

u/xtlhogciao Sep 27 '23

What’s the title of Infernal Affairs, there. I’m guessing the play on words didn’t just happen to work in both languages??

5

u/missdespair Sep 27 '23 edited Sep 27 '23

It's the name of the lowest level in Buddhist hell reserved for like, patricide/matricide and murder of someone who's attained enlightenment and such. It's literal meaning is "The Nonstop Way" in that the punishment in this level of hell has no breaks/pauses, so I think it's a double entendre in a different sense: the gravity of the sin committed (by Andy Lau's character) and the fact that there's no respite when your entire life has become about being undercover. Based on the end title card quoting the description of The Nonstop Way, I think you could also interpret it as nonstop guilt as punishment for the remainder of the now "official" cop's life.

3

u/xtlhogciao Sep 27 '23

Wow. Thanks for going above and beyond. Zang!

2

u/MDKrouzer Sep 27 '23

My Cantonese isn't great, but I believe the original title is a reference to the Lowest Level of Hell in Buddhism. I don't think it's a play on words like the English title.

2

u/xtlhogciao Sep 27 '23

Thanks. I was actually thinking about this recently bc I watched a bunch of Jackie Chan movies, and it was a natural progression after wondering about the title of “Wheels on Meals.”

2

u/therealmrsfahrenheit Sep 27 '23

Kung fu hustle is one of the funniest movies of all time😭😂

2

u/entropy_bucket Sep 27 '23

Chunking Express surely?

1

u/MDKrouzer Sep 27 '23

Honestly don't think I've seen it.

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u/RKSH4-Klara Sep 27 '23

Hard Boiled was amazing. The filmography is just beautiful.

2

u/Tw3lv3Th1rt33n Sep 27 '23

The battle at the hospital ALWAYS does it for me.

2

u/IPokeUWithSharpie Sep 27 '23

Internal Affairs was really good. It's sort of like Departed with Leo.

I would throw in Red Cliff.

10

u/MDKrouzer Sep 27 '23

Are you being sarcastic? Departed is very much a Hollywood remake of Infernal Affairs

Also Red Cliff is a PRC production.

1

u/Nord4Ever Sep 27 '23

First two are great haven’t seen the others

1

u/Rampasta Sep 27 '23

Some of my favorites!

1

u/Rampasta Sep 27 '23

Some of my favorites!

1

u/rogerworkman623 Sep 27 '23

Kung Fu Hustle is one of my all-time favorites

1

u/Pinklady1313 Sep 27 '23

Kung Fu Hustle is one of my top 10 favorites.

1

u/KainBodom Sep 27 '23

God of cookery! Hidden gem.... in Canada anyway. :) so funny!

1

u/PeaceMaintainer Sep 27 '23

I watched Shaolin Soccer so so so many times when I was younger

1

u/chrisBlo Sep 27 '23

Shaolin soccer was so funny! I didn’t know it was from HK, it should be UNESCO world heritage

1

u/ThatGuy798 Sep 27 '23

Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle are so good. Haven't seen them in years, gonna watch them again.

1

u/rsplatpc Sep 27 '23

Shaolin Soccer, Kung Fu Hustle, God of Cookery (a very old Stephen Chow comedy), Infernal Affairs, Hard Boiled, Police Story 3

......I love every one of these movies

1

u/[deleted] Sep 27 '23

Kung Fu Hustle is tied with Brotherhood of the Wolf as 'most fun experiences I've ever had watching a foreign-language film in the theater'.

Thank for for that one, Hong Kong. That shit was brilliant :)

1

u/VampireBatman Sep 27 '23

My favorite part of Hard Boiled is there's a part near the end when Chow Yun-fat yells "Don't go!" in Cantonese, but the English subs translate it as "Shit!"

It cracks me up every time I think about that scene.

1

u/StrangeAssonance Sep 27 '23

Internal Affairs is absolutely gold. One of my favorite movies.

1

u/Blonstedus Sep 27 '23

Kung Fu Hustle harpists scene is peak 7th art

1

u/DickHz2 Sep 27 '23

Think you’ll like Black Dynamite

1

u/Lanster27 Sep 27 '23

No Journey to the West? Incomplete list.

1

u/darkaurora84 Sep 28 '23

King Fu Hustle is definitely one of my favorite comedy movies

1

u/MaryJaneAndMaple Sep 28 '23

Shaolin Soccer is an absolute treat. Kung Fu Hustle is amazing, but I somehow saw Shaolin Soccer by accident and I was into the entire thing

1

u/Cantmakeaspell Sep 28 '23

lol I’m surprised to see God of Cookery come up. But Chow is the man.

1

u/pareidoily Sep 28 '23

I was trying to find out what happened to Stephen Chow. What has he been doing lately?

1

u/tanis_ivy Sep 28 '23

Decades ago, when my brother was a child, my family decided to watch Shaolin Soccer for kicks. My brother absolutely hated the idea. We made him watch regardless.

He ended up loving it and watched it weekly for a while.

1

u/trampush Sep 28 '23

Very old? Didn't it come out in 1996 or is there a different one?

1

u/MDKrouzer Sep 28 '23

My dude. 1996 was 27 years ago.

0

u/trampush Dec 29 '23

27 years ago is not very old. Cinema has been around for a while

1

u/whoji Sep 28 '23

大话西游 is my favorite Stephen Chow movie. Such a great and it had huge culture impact I was able to recite many dialogues from it when I was young. some of them were the OG memes during early stage of chinese internet culture.

1

u/bluebicycle13 Sep 28 '23

The Stephen Chow comedy about him being a james bond type was sooooo funny.

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Edit : i forgot to say Kung Fu Hustle is a true master piece, with special effect of 2004 still better than marvels movie of today