MongKok Carmen, "The Movies" a game by Alex Chan

MongKok Carmen by Wong Kar Wai 1988, **half
As Tears Go By 旺角卡门

I heard about this first film by Wong Kar Wai, and by chance, found a vcd at a shopping center in Mongkok. A HMV special. So I watched this action packed movie with the three young super stars to be.

Jackie Cheung Hok You, Andy Lau Tak Wah and Maggie Cheung Man Yuk. Lau Tak Wah is handsome and Cheung Hok You is quirky and a very good actor. Cheung Man Yuk, she plays a dainty free and natural girl - her gestures are fine girl like (would a shop girl from China/small island be so dainty? If she were, how could she manage to not marry the doctor but went for Lau Tak Wah the mafia guy?

And if she were not afraid to go after the mafia type of bf, she should have some character herself thats more colorful; or she would have had less idealistic expectations of this guy.

I appreciate the complications of the shooting in this movie, the local sets, not a moment of dead air. Andy Lau is really handsome and when he eats dinner with Man Yuk he puts his foot up on the stool first like the thuggish rough guy that he was, then turns to sit properly once it touches the sentimental aspects of his life.

Its a stylised movie of local hk scenario with injected/imported finesse built around a core of mainstream Confucionist "brotherhood", "brotherly love", "family struggles".

The dialogue between the "Uncle" and his two "Big Brother" is interesting. Its a type of local Cantonese and very lively with unspoken assumptions that a non Hong Kong person might find difficult to appreciate.

Same with the opening scene, where Lau Tak Wah receives a phone call from his aunt who spoke in a local village dialect - Lau himself doesnt reply in the local dialect. It implies that these are all new immigrants - but who is not a new immigrant in HK? Everybody ran to HK in the 50s, 60s from Southern China! Older generations either spoke Cantonese with a Shanghai accent or a local dialect accent.

This type of attention to detail and giving on screen time for the use of authentic dialogue puts the film at a more serious authentic level; or at least say, a tiny cut above the regular kick, fight, blood, sex/love/bar/mafia, everybody dies - type of action flick.

Cheung Man Yuk is not yet the stylish high fashion model-like gal we see today. She has a plump face w baby fat, and small almond eye features, her smile is sweet and reminds us of a first girl friend with delicate innocence.

This is no "mongkok Carmen", hardly any trace of a firey iconic Carmen; rather more girl next door disappointed in bad situations of "bad boys".

However, the title is catchy, in keeping with style requirements of HK entertainment. People would watch a "Carmen" like sexy gal rather than "girl next door".

Great combination of the three young actors who each have made a long way to the star position that they now hold today.

"The Movies" a game, by Alex Chan 2006; **half
Alex Chan, made a short machinima film in 4 days, w the “The Movies" Game

interview

This machinima is made with a game package, so the characters, costumes, settings might be v limited. I think the subtitles are fine, some critics say its "awkward" etc but in the overall visual of the film, its not an outstanding issue; its rather in keeping with the roughness of the tool itself. And the film maker had a very strong message to transmit and he did a very good job.

How good a job?
He inspired me to buy a copy of this software to see what tools he had at his disposition.

I have seen a lot of machinima, and this one is very interesting, there is no dead moments, we just want to see whats going to happen next!

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