Director Fruit Chan is feeling some of the backlash of fame. While Hong Kong critics may have willingly overlooked the imperfections of his $600,000 Made In Hong Kong, they have been less generous with his latest release, The Longest Summer.
'The reviews have been frustrating,' he starts, with a shake of his head. 'They say I portray this world as a big, bad one and society as greedy but that is the way things are. They say it is an 'old' film, but the film is about middle-aged men. I am making a film about Hong Kong society as it is.' The Longest Summer is the long-awaited follow-up to Chan's award-winning low-budget Made In Hong Kong. The bleak and gritty look at the lives of several teenagers caught up in the triad world rocked the film industry when it was released in 1997.
In an industry that was swept up in multi-million dollar productions, it was a miracle that Made In Hong Kong ever saw the light of day. Made on a paltry budget and leftover - sometimes outdated - film stock and starring unknowns Chan picked off the streets, the film went on to sweep awards in Hong Kong and overseas. It has also been nominated for the best foreign film category in the coming Academy Awards in March although Chan has had little time to dwell on whether it will be among the final five shortlisted films.
Some reviewers have been quick to suggest that fame and fortune may have tarnished some of Chan's gilded edge. The Longest Summer was made for 10 times the budget of its predecessor. Chan laughs at this: 'Fame I may have, but definitely not fortune. It is still difficult to get financing.' Most of the extra money, he says, went towards the action scenes and making up for a particularly rainy season. The downside of Made In Hong Kong's critical success for Chan has been that it is now the epitome of 'success with low-budget films'.
'So many people have told me I have spoiled the market for them. Even now, people will say to me: 'you managed on so little before'. I enjoy what I am doing but it does not mean I only enjoy making low-budget films.' The Longest Summer obviously does not have the same element of surprise as Made In Hong Kong. It is inevitable that critics would be harsh: some find it too long, some too short. Others say it is too bleak, yet there are others who say the ending is too upbeat. Chan knows he can't please everyone but the feedback has made him return to the editing room for a fresh cut and he declares the new version 'much better'.
'I knew people would compare The Longest Summer to Made In Hong Kong when I started making the film but I didn't really care. I did not put any pressure on myself; all I worried about was getting it done faster so that I could save money,' says Chan, who made his directorial debut with the 1991 Golden Harvests bomb Finale In Blood.