Asian Film Review: 'All About Love' (得閒炒飯) - HKIFF Summer Festival Premiere

Last night I went to the premiere of Ann Hui's new movie 'All About Love' (得閒炒飯).  The film also marks Vivian Chow(周慧敏)'s first feature film in almost 15 years! 

Not only was this the premiere of the film, it was also the opening film of the 5th HKIFFSummer Festival (or is it the Summer HKIFF?  or the HK Summer IFF?)  -- some official photos are here:

http://www.alivenotdead.com/HKIFF/The-5th-Summer-International-Film-Festival-Grand-Opening-profile-1049518.html I took a few pics too, but let me share my review first!

Before going to the film, a few people asked me what it was about,  I looked up the promo blurb and was NOT very excited with what I read:

Two women, one-time lovers they, run into each other at counseling service for expecting mothers. Both "it happened one night" incidents, the bubbly lawyer is bearing a married client's child, and the demure bank clerk a teenager's. While the course of true love indeed never did run smooth, fate has never been kinder to any life on earth: in the end woman gets woman, with the two men happily performing the chores of fatherhood. Beyond a handful of colorful characters, script-writer Yeung Yee-shan (Herman Yau’s Whispers and Moans& True Women For Sale) throws in a good measure of “correct sexual politics” without being over-bearing. Yes that's right, its not just about lesbian ladies having babies... its about OLD lesbian ladies having badies...  :-P

Uh-oh,  that's like 2 strikes against it right there! (guess which two!)     Needless to say, i was not particularly expecting to enjoy this movie!

It stars Vivian Chow and Sandra Ng (吳君如) as the aforementioned former lovers who both happen to be pregnant when they cross paths again.    The movie mostly focuses on each of their relationships with their respective baby-daddies (yes, I've been waiting for a chance to use the term 'baby daddy' in a blog for a long time...)  as well as the tough life choices they face about being single moms or raising children in non-traditional families (they can move to California and get married now at least!)

Despite my initial trepidations about the subject matter,  I actually enjoyed the movie.  It's pretty well written and the supporting characters definitely add a lot to the piece over all.   William Chan (陳偉霆) and Cheung Siu-fai(張兆輝) play the fathers and Jo Koo(谷祖琳, always good) and Joey Man(萬綺雯) play Sandra's stable lesbian couple friends. Sandra is usually sufficiently entertaining in her comedic roles, as she is here again (I enjoy seeing her kiss someone besides Raymond Wong for once!)   I was never a Vivian Chow fan at all in the back in the day, but I have to say,  at 42 she looks pretty damn beautiful! ;-)

Almost the entire film is shot in the Soho/Midlevels region of HK.  As our office used to be near there, I know this neighborhood quite well and recognized pretty much every location (they shoot in front of the same cafe that was in 'Drink Drank Drunk' for instance).  I actually spent most of the movie trying to see if I could spot any AnD stickers on anything in the background of any scenes.  I was disappointed though,  the best I could do was spot a 'Foodie Magazine' stand in one scene! :-P

On a more positive AnD related note, look for cameos by:

Raven Hanson as the yoga student

Conroy Chan as the airline pilot?!

Angelita Li as the theme song's singer!

I'll give the movie a 6/10.  Its not a real serious look at gender and family in HK society,  but if it helps open people's minds a bit to alternate lifestyles, I guess that's a good thing.

Addendum - I want to know what HK dating website it is that William Chan uses to meet these hot bisexual cougar women with such... relaxed... standards! :-P