An intriguing drama based on the 2010 Hong Kong murders

Hong Kong film critic-turned-director Yu-lai Ong’s latest feature begins with a harrowing crime committed by an unlikely culprit: one night, without any prior warning or explanation, a man named Ming (played by Sue Dillon), a troubled 15-year-old boy, picked up a meat cleaver in the kitchen and murdered his mother and sister in cold blood.

Yong explores the aftermath of this shocking event through the eyes of Ming’s father, Yuen (Sean Lau), as he attempts to piece his life back together while also trying to figure out what led his son to do such a horrific thing. behavior. In this sense, dad Reminiscent of the director’s 2015 murder mystery, port of callexcept this time the plot is not about who did it, but why. More importantly, it’s about how to move on with life in the face of such complete tragedy.

The film switches back and forth between different time periods, more of a kaleidoscope of impressions than a thriller. Guilt and regret swirl around the past and present, relieved by occasional moments of happiness. We are continually plunged into Yuan’s mind as he attempts to make sense of a world gone wrong and reconnect with the son he has lost. It’s an almost impossible emotional journey, even though dad While its delivery is never strong enough, it’s still an interesting look at how a broken family might find redemption.

The story is based on a real case that occurred in Tsuen Wan in northwest Hong Kong in 2010. Tsuen Wan is a suburb with numerous residential buildings and crowded market streets. There, Yuen and his wife Yin (Gu Zhuo) run a busy family restaurant that is open 24/7 to serve people in the neighborhood. The couple also raises two children: Ming, who we see range in age from 5 to 15 years old; and his adorable sister Grace.

Because we know from the beginning what Ming will eventually do, we watch carefully for signs of his strange behavior. The boy is very withdrawn and may have autism spectrum disorder. (There’s talk of autism, though that doesn’t necessarily refer to him.) He’s obsessed with animal rights and the state of the environment, which might explain why he admitted to the police that he killed Yin and Grace to prevent overcrowding. .

But none of that really explains what brought him to this point. When Yuan visited his son, who was serving a ten-year sentence, in a mental prison, he kept asking the questions we all ask: Why? The fact that neither Ming nor the film offers a clear answer may be very frustrating to some viewers, but it also rings true. As Ludwig Wittgenstein famously said: “What cannot be said, one must remain silent. Some things are still difficult to say.

Yuan himself didn’t say much. He is a man of few words and a fairly stern father figure, but he is far from an abusive parent. We see him encouraging his children in countless flashbacks, whether he’s training Ming to work at a restaurant or allowing Grace to bring a stray cat into their home. He seems to want the best for his children, even if he doesn’t know how to communicate with them.

The director captures the family’s life before and after the murder through a series of visually and thematically interconnected scenes that emerge from Yuan’s anguished mind. We don’t always know where we are on the timeline, and it doesn’t necessarily matter. The narrative style is reminiscent of Wong Kar-wai’s work – Yung’s port of call Shot by Christopher Doyle, who has shot many of Wong Kar-Wai’s films, the film features scenes that exist less in the present than as fleeting memories experienced by the protagonist.

This style somewhat dilutes the dramatic impact dadThis is despite the heavy use of slow motion, music and other techniques to try to heighten the feeling. Yung is more of a rational filmmaker than an emotional one. He was interested in how Yuan responded to what happened, not necessarily how he felt. Andy Lau, who starred in Johnnie To’s movies crazy detectiveperfectly encapsulates a character who faces terrifying challenges with complete stoicism, even though you can feel him burning inside.

This sentiment is evident from the first scene, where we see Yuan getting ready for the business day, putting down chairs and accepting takeout. Meanwhile, forensic officers were still investigating the murder in his apartment, where there was a large bloodstain on the living room floor. dad Ask us how these two worlds can coexist, and whether a loving Father can find a way to exist in them.