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July Rhapsody男人四十
Director: Ann Hui | Writer: Ivy Ho
Stars: Jacky Cheung, Anita Mui, Karena Lam
Brimming with unspeakable serene beauty, JULY RHAPSODY by Hong Kong's director Ann Hui (A Simple Life) and scriptwriter Ivy Ho (Comrades Almost a Love Story) is a profound and soothing tale about how one paddles through life’s chaos as many seemingly eternal inspiration sources of times, like the Yangtze river, quietly fade away. In appearance, Lam prides himself on teaching classic Chinese literature at an elite school and a family of a caring wife and two sons. Deep down, the man of forty tastes unfulfilled ambitions in affluent old classmates' belittlements and unsatisfied desires in seductions from a free-spirited student. The sudden return of his teenage years mentor finally wrecks this vulnerable balance. Lam must unearth the long-hidden truth about who he is and gain a new perspective on how to live the rest of his life.
Berlinale Panorama
San Francisco International Film Festival
Busan International Film Festival
Taiwan Golden Horse Film Festival
Hong Kong Film Awards
Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards
“Ann Hui may actually be Hong Kong’s best storyteller..her finest film in years.”
— Kozo (Ross Chen), LoveHKFilm.com
“There’s a serenity and quiet beauty about this small but impressive film.”
— David Stratton, Variety
“She is a narrative filmmaker who situates her characters in the imperfect social world and shows them struggling, and largely succeeding, to survive. The daily doings and settings of the characters are densely detailed with a kind of documentary realism, and the story unfolds almost casually, with moments of humour and pathos. ”
— Freda Freiberg, Senses of Cinema
“…not only satisfyingly enthralling while it lasts but also effectively lingers in one’s mind, imagination and maybe even heart for days — not just minutes and hours — afterwards plus demands to be shared with and by others.”
— Brian Naas, BRNS.com
“Movies like July Rhapsody are Ann Hui’s specialty, and when you’re yearning for a more tame representation of Hong Kong’s cultural tendencies, she never disappoints.”
— Wilson Kwong, Throwdown 815
“noteworthy for containing Anita Mui’s final film performance...She was Hong Kong’s biggest star at the time, but here she plays a woman whose marriage is about to disintegrate through no apparent fault of her own…The greats can vanish and fade away, swept aside by the passage of time and fickleness…This is a movie about the quiet end of something.”
— Jay Seaver, Jay’s Movie Blog
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Ann HUI
許鞍華
Ann Hui grew up in Hong Kong, where she studied literature before attending the London Film School. She won the Golden Horse Award for her first feature film, The Secret (1979). The Story of Woo Viet (1981) and Boat People (1982) both premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. The Romance of Book and Sword screened in the Berlinale Forum in 1988, followed later by invitations to the Competition for Summer Snow (1995) - awarded the Silver Bear for Best Actress - and Ordinary Heroes (1999). My American Grandson (1990), Stunt Woman (1996), Eighteen Springs (1997), July Rhapsody (2002) and Goddess of Mercy (2003) also screened at the Berlinale. In 2011, A Simple Life celebrated its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival. Ann Hui has been honoured six times at the Hong Kong Film Awards and three times at the Golden Horse Awards for Best Director. She has also received the Berlinale Camera (1997), several honorary doctorates and was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).
Coming to DVDs and VOD in Fall 2024
JulyRhapsodyMovie.com
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
The Guild Cinema, 3403 Central Ave NE, Albuquerque, NM 87106-1431, United States,Albuquerque, New Mexico
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