Director:
Yonfan (Yeung Fan)
Cast: Stephen Fung, Daniel Wu, Jason Tsang, Terence Yin, Shu
Qi
Gay Hong Kong is not an overly popular subject matter, though
there have been several films that tackle the subject. Jet
is a male prostitute, seemingly laissez faire about his existence,
giving the appearance of coolness as he goes about his business,
until he meets Sam, a handsome stranger he follows and later
befriends. He soon finds himself falling for him, but Sam's
past and his attitude to his sexuality casts a shadow on any
potential happiness in the future. Several stories run throughout
the film, and all leading back to Sam. Handsome faces parade
through Jet's and Sam's lives - in fact, "bishonen"
or "pretty boys" is a Japanese word for gay men.
"Bishonen"
portrays a seedy side of the gay Hong Kong subculture, filled
with male prostitutes being cruised by older men, casual sex,
gay cops posing for nude photography, and gay pop stars (gee,
what a novelty). I doubt this film will earn any political
correctness awards, though Yong Fan doesn't seem to have any
negativity towards the subject material, or indeed, any feeling
whatsoever. However, the love story and human frailty of the
characters, especially Sam's tortured existence, is handled
adequately.
Structurally
though, the film is a bit uneven. It has trouble making up
its mind between Jet and Sam as its main focus, awkwardly
shifting between their two lives. Daniel Wu (Sam) gives a
decent enough performance (considering his total lack of ability
to speak Cantonese, a slight irritation in the film), though
you have to wonder a bit about the motivation for his character
that seems to deliberately pull the plug on every potential
relationship he comes across. There also doesn't seem any
point for a female narration to the movie, which I thought
at first was the voice of Sam's lesbian friend (Su Qi), but
could be unconnected for all I know. Its easy enough to produce
a film which deals with loneliness, alienation and angst from
a subject matter that lends itself easily to such an interpretation
- so I guess the only need to watch this film is for the bishonen
that populate it.
Eden
Law
|