Hong Kong: City on Fire main poster

Hong Kong: City on Fire

Visit website

3.5/10 • 2

2022-11-221h 30m

Documentary

Taking us from Hong Kong's 1997 handover from British rule into Chinese administrative control, all the way to 2019, when a controversial extradition bill is greeted with massive street protests, this urgent film beds in with Hong Kong's pro-democracy demonstrations, offering a frontline portrait of four young protesters through a year of struggle. We see their hopes for a freer life and feel their fears as the authorities crack down. Pulse-racing scenes bring the viewer to street level, where peaceful protest is met with fury and tear gas. Clear-eyed about the complications and contradictions that come with a movement that changed Hong Kong forever, Hong Kong: City on Fire is a brave document of troubled times.

Directors
Choi Ka-yan, Lee Hiu-ling
Editors
Yip Yu Han

Top Billed Cast

View Credits

    Reviews1

    View Reviews
    CinemaSerf Avatar

    CinemaSerf

    Nov 23, 2022

    6/10

    I was really disappointed with this documentary. Set amidst the protests in Hong Kong against the increasingly oppressive action of the Chinese central government, we follow the activities of the students who are trying to put up some meaningful and effective resistance. Some of the imagery is effective - the overwhelming force of the well-equipped police against an intentionally leaderless coalition of youngsters is well illustrated, but there is little informed analysis here. It is really just a collection of user-generated video without any attempt to create a narrative that contextualise who is doing what. The risks taken by the protesters when balanced against their family and relationship commitments is referenced, but not developed anywhere near sufficiently and, indeed, when one young couple have a disagreement, the almost petulant response of the boyfriend borders on the angry melodramatic. This lack of expansion of the subject and exploration of who they are and what drives them to this drastic, and perilous, action leaves us to assume or imagine too much, and the paucity of contributions from the older population doesn't help it's scope either. Of course, keeping their identities secret would have been crucial, but the lack of one-to-one conversations does deprive this of much potency. It will certainly maintain awareness of the brave activities of these people, and highlight the seemingly futile efforts they are making against a super-state that cares little about their liberties or freedoms, but sadly - for me, anyway - this is little better than a collection of video diaries that could have been so much more powerful.

    Media

    • Hong Kong: City on Fire poster

    Recommendations

    • No Backdrop

      Man

      6.7

    • R-Rated Idol Seung-ha's Sex Scandal main backdrop

      R-Rated Idol Seung-ha's Sex Scandal

      6.8

    • The King's Daughter main backdrop

      The King's Daughter

      7.0

    • Man main backdrop

      Man

      7.0

    • Leto main backdrop

      Leto

      7.4

    • Doors main backdrop

      Doors

      4.9

    • Vacation Friends 2 main backdrop

      Vacation Friends 2

      6.4

    • In Her Place main backdrop

      In Her Place

      6.0

    • Elyas main backdrop

      Elyas

      6.1

    • The Babysitter: Killer Queen main backdrop

      The Babysitter: Killer Queen

      6.4

    • The Roundup: No Way Out main backdrop

      The Roundup: No Way Out

      7.2

    • Red Dot main backdrop

      Red Dot

      5.9

    • The Hole in the Ground main backdrop

      The Hole in the Ground

      5.6

    • way main backdrop

      way

      5.7

    • Star! main backdrop

      Star!

      6.9

    • I Am Santa Claus main backdrop

      I Am Santa Claus

      6.5

    • Terrifier 3 main backdrop

      Terrifier 3

      6.9

    • WWE WrestleMania XXVII main backdrop

      WWE WrestleMania XXVII

      7.5

    • The Soul Eater main backdrop

      The Soul Eater

      6.1

    • Place of Bones main backdrop

      Place of Bones

      5.7

    Status
    Released
    Original Language
    cn
    Budget
    --
    Revenue
    --
    Keywords
    No keywords have been added.