city on fire
review
Yolk
Winter/Spring 2000
Bruce Fong Katsu
CITY ON FIRE: Hong Kong Cinema
By Lisa Odham Stokes
and Michael Hoover
Verso, 372 pages
Boasting support and rave reviews from directors such as Stanley Tong
and John Woo, this latest tome on Hong Kong cinema is the real deal.
This latest examination of directors, actors and films from HK is at
once comprehensive and entertaining. Stokes and Hoover take their time
in their dissection of this still hip and popular import, which has lost
most of its brightest stars to the US. Instead of a by-the- book review
of movies and stars, City on Fire digs deeper and unearths themes, ideas
and the overall significance of these movies within the context of Hong
Kong's social, economic, cultural and political arena. So instead of
looking at only the surface of the films, City on Fire peels the drama,
violence, pathos away to closely look at the mentality of the filmmakers
when making these epics as well as talking with the actors who were in
them. The result is a taut and extremely well researched and
well-written expose and homage to these films. Especially impressive are
studies of lesser-known films such as Legend of the Wolf and Beyond
Hypothermia. City on Fire is not solely for the academic though. Anyone
who is remotely curious (hasn't the whole world caught on to HK films
yest?) about HK movies would do well to start with this book. Not only
would one find a treasure chest of titles to seek put, one can immerse
in the fun yet extensive look at these movies' significance within a
larger perspective. A definite must for veteran and new fans of HK
cinema.
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