A seminal film in the history of the Hong Kong New Wave, Boat People is only Ann Hui’s fourth feature film. A Vietnam film unlike your usual American perspectives, the film tracks Japanese photojournalist Akutagawa’s journey in the country post-Communist victory. At first exposed to pre-arranged trips by the country’s propaganda department, Akutagawa eventually finds his way into meeting the poverty-stricken majority oppressed by the authoritarian government. As he tries to help a broken family, he finds his status as an outsider less useful than he thinks. Ironically, Ann Hui accepted the help and resources of Communist China in making this film, leading to bans by the opposing Taiwanese government. But the most popular reading of the film remains a scathing critique of Communist dictatorship and prescient allegory for a post-Handover Hong Kong. Also boycotted by French leftists at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival and further complicated by the casting of Hongkongers in Japanese and Vietnam roles, Boat People was caught in a political quagmire from all sides. Yet governments have toppled and evolved, and Hui’s film has only endured as a politically thorny and humanist masterpiece.

San Diego screening presented with The Hong Konger Club as part of the 2nd San Diego Hong Kong Film Festival

《投奔怒海》是香港新浪潮最重要的電影之一，但只是許鞍華的第四齣長片。有別於傳統荷里活越戰片，《投奔怒海》講述了日本戰地攝影師芥川在戰後共產越南的經歷。越共宣傳部門為芥川安排了一連串觀光行程，但芥川還是溜走到貧民窟裏，接觸了受獨裁政府壓逼的破碎家庭。當他嘗試幫助他們時，他發現了自己外人的身份不外如是。諷刺的是，許鞍華為拍攝這部電影，接受了中共政府的資源與幫助，使她和眾演職員受到了當時仍是由國民黨高壓統治的台灣制裁。但至今對《投奔怒海》最普遍的解讀仍是許鞍華對高壓獨裁者的狠批，以及對香港主權移交後的警世預言。《投奔怒海》在1982年康城影展受到了法國左派人士聲討，許導演還找了香港演員飾演所有越籍和日籍角色，政治上四面楚歌。但最終政權和國家都顛倒了，《投奔怒海》還在，在時間洗禮過後更成一齣充滿政治思考與人文關懷的傑作。

聖地牙哥場次與香港會共同呈獻

Director’s bio
Ann Hui is one of the leading figures of the Hong Kong New Wave, and the city’s all-time greatest woman filmmaker. She holds the records for most Hong Kong Film Awards and Golden Horse Awards for Best Director. In 2020, she was awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement by the Venice Film Festival. She is known for her social awareness and realist touch, and her most notable works include her “Vietnam trilogy,” Summer Snow, and A Simple Life, which swept four awards at the 68th Venice Film Festival.

導演簡介
許鞍華是香港新浪潮的領導人物之一以及香港史上最偉大的女電影人。她是榮獲最多次香港電影金像獎和台灣金馬獎最佳導演的雙紀錄保持者。於2020年，她更榮獲威尼斯影展的終生成就獎。她以社會觸覺和人文關懷見稱，代表作包括「越南三部曲」、《女人四十》、《桃姐》等，其中《桃姐》於第68屆威尼斯影展橫掃四個獎項。