Hong Kong Oscars best international feature film entries since 2014, from Port of Call to Better Days and A Light Never Goes Out
- A Light Never Goes Out was earlier selected as Hong Kong’s entry for best international feature film in the 2024 Academy Awards
- We recall other films nominated in the category, previously called best foreign-language film, including Derek Tsang’s Better Days and Ann Hui’s The Golden Era
In late September, it was announced that A Light Never Goes Out had been selected as the Hong Kong entry in the 2024 Academy Awards’ best international feature film category (previously best foreign-language film).
The next step is to see whether it is shortlisted for nomination in this category by an academy committee, or actually nominated.
So what kinds of films get selected by the Federation of Motion Film Producers of Hong Kong to represent the city in the Oscars race? We look back at the past 10 years’ submissions.
The Golden Era (2014)
To the Fore (2015)
Port of Call (2016)
To this day, this breakout hit by former film critic Philip Yung Tsz-kwong holds the distinction of being the only title in HKFA history to sweep all five of its acting categories.
Mad World (2017)
If there’s one defining trend in Hong Kong cinema since the mid-2010s, it’s the steady stream of aspiring filmmakers making assured feature-film debuts on modest budgets telling humanistic stories with a strong social conscience.
Operation Red Sea (2018)
In case it wasn’t evident that the taste of the Hong Kong cinema-going public had no bearing whatsoever on the city’s Oscar submission, the selection of Dante Lam’s Operation Red Sea in 2018 made it abundantly clear.
A mega-budget military spectacle that was inspired by the People’s Liberation Army navy’s evacuation of Chinese citizens during the 2015 Yemen civil war, this patriotic production was a staggering box office hit in mainland China, taking 3.65 billion yuan, or US$502 million, and a disappointment in Hong Kong, where it took just HK$8.7 million, or US$1.1 million.
The White Storm 2: Drug Lords (2019)
As if it wasn’t awkward enough that a generic gangster thriller had been picked to represent Hong Kong in the art-house-inclined Oscar category, the producers’ federation even had the good sense to choose a “sequel” for the purpose, any semblance of originality be damned.
Better Days (2020)
Better Days was only the third Hong Kong film to progress to receiving an Oscar nomination in this category and, more significantly, the first with a Hong Kong director at the helm; the other two were Raise the Red Lantern and Farewell My Concubine, both directed by mainland Chinese filmmakers.
Zero to Hero (2021)
The focus returned to Hong Kong with the selection of Zero to Hero, a wholesome, crowd-pleasing biopic of former Paralympic champion sprinter So Wa-wai that is part family melodrama, part zany sports comedy.
So is played by three different actors in the film, which is fronted by Sandra Ng Kwan-yue as the protagonist’s devoted mother.
Where the Wind Blows (2022)
However, the ambitious film, Philip Yung’s follow-up to Port of Call, had such a sprawling narrative that it divided its audience right down the middle.
A Light Never Goes Out (2023)
The latest Hong Kong film to try to squeeze into the Oscars race is likely to be seen by most viewers as a love letter to the city’s fading tradition of neon-sign making.
