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Asian cinema

Asian cinema
Views, news, and reviews of films from the continent's biggest movie production centres.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM
An old Shanghai-style flat. Photo: courtesy hoo

This refurbished home is a love letter to old Shanghai

A Hong Kong designer transforms his late aunt’s flat with 1930s East-meets-West glamour.

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Neville Sarony at his office in Central, Hong Kong. Photo: Tracy Wong

Barrister by day, jazz singer by night – and that’s only half the story

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The streets outside the KR (Krishna Rajendra) Market. Photo: Getty Images

Insider’s guide to Bengaluru: from flower markets to late-night bars

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Chef Yoshiteru Ikegawa uses Kishu binchotan, a revered type of charcoal from Wakayama prefecture. Photo: courtesy Torikaze

He wasn’t allowed to grill for years. That’s how he mastered yakitori

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The “Monet – Moment and Memory” section of the “Into the Modern: Impressionism from the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA), Boston” exhibition at the National Gallery Singapore Photo: courtesy National Gallery Singapore

Singapore Art Week invites the world to take a closer look at the city’s art scene

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Ship ahoy ... the Sail Training Association of Japan’s full-masted brigantine, the Kaisei, visits Hong Kong to drum up support for an Asian society of novice sailors, in 1994. Photo: SCMP Archives

In Pictures: majestic sailing ships that made Hong Kong a port of call

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Tang Wei (left) and Tony Leung Chiu-wai in a still from Lust, Caution. Photo: Edko Films
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

How Lust, Caution made waves for its sex scenes but overdid the caution

Although beautifully staged, this Hong Kong-US-China production starring Tony Leung and Tang Wei had a muddled story and misguided messages.

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Hong Kong’s Category III adult film industry laid bare in 2 films

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Profile | Adult film legend Amy Yip bares all about her soft porn career

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

How the Erotic Ghost Story films shocked and seduced Hong Kong

The trio of 1990s adult movies with Hong Kong sex symbols like Amy Yip and Japanese adult-video actresses like Kudo Hitomi were a huge hit.

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(From left) Amy Yip, Man Siu and Kudo Hitomi in a still from Erotic Ghost Story.
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

The Hong Kong films released in 2024, ranked from worst to best

From We 12 to Papa, Fly Me to the Moon and The Last Dance, our ranking of the Hong Kong films that hit cinemas in the course of the year.

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

How Chingmy Yau shocked Hong Kong and became one of its biggest sex symbols

Chingmy Yau’s transition from respectable actress to star of Category III adult films full of sex and violence like ‘Naked Killer’ was quite the revelation in Hong Kong in the 1990s.

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Asian cinema: Korean films

‘I’m second,’ says South Korean star Hyun Bin on life now he’s a dad

Hyun Bin says his son and his wife, Crash Landing on You co-star Son Ye-jin, are his priorities, and reveals the pressures of making Harbin.

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Korean actor Hyun Bin with his wife Son Ye-jin. The couple married in March 2022 and had their son in November the same year. Photo: Instagram/hyunbinactor
The Philippines

‘Bombas’: the Philippine sex films whose stars were household names

Cheaply made and with female characters who were either predators or victims, bombas thrived despite Catholic Church opposition; they also often represented the hardships of everyday life for Filipinos under the Marcos dictatorship.

Asian cinema: Korean films

5 career-defining roles for Hyun Bin – yes, one of them is Secret Garden

From Hyun Bin’s breakthrough in the 2005 drama My Lovely Sam Soon to huge hit Secret Garden to Netflix series Crash Landing on You, five of the Korean actor’s career-defining roles as he turns 41.

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Is Simon Yam Hong Kong cinema’s hardest working actor?

Adults-only and mainstream crime films, sex films, and serious dramas with Alex Law and Ann Hui – Simon Yam has done them all. Good-looking and with an expressive face, he has a work ethic second to none.

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Simon Yam at the 2017 Hong Kong Film Awards presentation ceremony. Photo: Edward Wong
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

3 of Hong Kong martial arts legend Alexander Fu Sheng’s more unusual movies

Chinatown Kid, The Deadly Breaking Sword and Treasure Hunters saw Fu taking on more varied projects than his usual Shaolin kung fu films.

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Alexander Fu Sheng in a still from Chinatown Kid (1977), one of the films that saw the Hong Kong martial arts star take on projects outside his usual Shaolin kung fu genre.
Icons and Influencers

Designer Hung La shares the inspo behind his ‘bad boy’ brand Lu’u Dan

La’s misspent youth crystallised into a subversive style whose celebrity fans include Justin Bieber, Billie Eilish and Lewis Hamilton.

Malaysia

Malaysia’s Michelle Yeoh nominated for worst actress Razzie

Three years after her historic Oscar win, Michelle Yeoh faces competition from Natalie Portman and Ariana DeBose for the dubious honour.

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Why M+ and Chanel are bringing rare Asian avant-garde films to Mubi

Streaming platform Mubi teams up with Hong Kong’s M+ museum and Chanel to put the spotlight on 10 films, including a John Woo short.

John Woo in a still from “Dead Knot” (1969), which is streaming on Mubi as part of its partnership with M+ and Chanel.
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Ciao UFO wins best picture in 2025 Hong Kong Film Critics Society awards

Nostalgic drama Ciao UFO scoops top prize, while Louis Koo (Behind the Shadows) and Fish Liew (Someone Like Me) pick up best actor awards.

Charlene Choi in a still from Ciao UFO, winner of the best picture prize in the 2025 Hong Kong Film Critics awards. Photo: Golden Scene
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Why did the Hong Kong Film Awards drop 4 eligible films from its 2026 list?

The four films missing from the provisional list feature actors or themes unpopular with authorities in Hong Kong and mainland China, say industry insiders.

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Why Ronny Yu’s The Postman Fights Back is an unusual wuxia gem

Starring Leung Kar-yan and with a young Chow Yun-fat on the cast, 1982’s The Postman Fights Back is an intriguing mix of Western and wuxia.

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Hong Kong celebrities and icons

Profile | How Nancy Sit went from child star to Hong Kong’s most beloved TV matriarch

After leaving the spotlight at the height of her fame, Nancy Sit overcame personal struggles, reinvented herself and returned to superstardom.

ACTRESS NANCY SIT KAR-YIN.
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Loved Back to the Past? 10 Asian time travel gems you may also enjoy

After the success of Louis Koo’s Back to the Past, here are 10 other Asian time-travelling movies that are well worth checking out.

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Review | Unexpected Family: Jackie Chan trades kicks for tears in sentimental drama

Chan excels as a man with Alzheimer’s disease in this well-meaning but ham-fisted film about the importance of family.

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Hong Kong entertainment

Hong Kong Cantopop singer Raymond Lam cancels 2 concerts in Japan

Lam’s shows scheduled for January 31 and February 1 at the Tokyo Garden Theatre have been postponed indefinitely.

Hong Kong actor and singer Raymond Lam will not be performing in Tokyo. Photo: Handout
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Review | Finch & Midland: Anthony Wong and Patrick Tam can’t save grim diaspora drama

A strong cast is wasted in this undignified tale about Hong Kong immigrants struggling in Canada, which mistakes grimness for profundity.

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Patrick Tam in a still from Finch & Midland (category IIB; Cantonese, English), directed by Timothy Yeung. Anthony Wong and Harriet Yeung co-star.
Hong Kong culture

Editorial | Amid Back to the Past’s success, Hong Kong cinema should look to the future

Although its heyday may be over, the city’s film industry must focus on quality over quantity as it adapts to the changing world of entertainment.

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

3 of Gong Li’s surprising 1990s Hong Kong movie roles

Gong switched gears after making it in Chinese art-house films, starring with Stephen Chow, Brigitte Lin and others in lesser-known movies.

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Asian cinema: Korean films

Korean film icon Ahn Sung-ki remembered: 5 of his best films

Known affectionately as ‘The Nation’s Actor’, South Korea’s Ahn Sung-ki starred in more than 100 feature films during his long career.

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Ahn Sung-ki poses on the red carpet during the opening ceremony of the 26th Busan International Film Festival in 2021. Photo: AFP
South Korea

South Korean ‘nation’s actor’ Ahn Sung-ki dies at 74

Ahn collected over 40 major movie awards in his lifetime, including winning the Grand Bell Awards for best actor five times.

South Korean actor Ahn Sung-ki attends the 11th Busan International Film Festival in 2006. Photo: AP
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Why Jet Li and Wong Jing’s The New Legend of Shaolin is underrated

The 1994 cult classic The New Legend of Shaolin blends comedy, action and child martial artists in a fresh take on the Shaolin myth.

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Singapore

Small market, global competition: can Singapore’s filmmakers break out abroad?

The government has rolled out a US$155.6 million programme to help local filmmakers reach wider markets amid shrinking cinema audiences.

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Hong Kong economy

Back to the Past, starring Louis Koo and Raymond Lam, smashes Hong Kong record

Historical sci-fi action film earns HK$10.91 million in debut, the most for a Chinese film opening in city.

Louis Koo and Raymond Lam star in a new historical sci-fi film Back to the Past. Photo: Nora Tam
Louis Koo and Raymond Lam star in a new historical sci-fi film Back to the Past. Photo: Nora Tam
China consumption

China’s box office up 22% in 2025 to US$7.4 billion, led by smash hit Ne Zha 2

World’s second-largest movie market sees domestic films capture nearly 80 per cent of sales, while Disney’s Zootopia sequel sets new high for imported titles.

Hong Kong celebrities and icons

Profile | How Jordan Chan went from Hong Kong bad boy to patriotic family man in China

Jordan Chan came from poverty in Guangdong, moved to Hong Kong as a child and worked odd jobs before joining TVB as a dance apprentice.

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Review | Back to the Past: Louis Koo, Raymond Lam lead nostalgic film sequel

This big-budget sci-fi fantasy may be an emotional watch for fans of the 2001 Hong Kong show A Step into the Past, even if it falls short.

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Louis Koo in a still from Back to the Past.
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

The 12 best Asian films of 2025: Ne Zha 2, Kokuho and more

Our pick of the best Asian films of the past year includes a record-breaking animation and a movie that is nothing short of breathtaking.

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Ryo Yoshizawa in a still from Kokuho, one of the Post’s best Asian films of the past year. Photo: Shuichi Yoshida/ASP
Ryo Yoshizawa in a still from Kokuho, one of the Post’s best Asian films of the past year. Photo: Shuichi Yoshida/ASP
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

How Stephen Chow and Donnie Yen reinvented Bruce Lee’s classic Chen Zhen

Fist of Fury 1991 with Stephen Chow and TV series Fist of Fury with Donnie Yen saw two different versions of Bruce Lee’s famous character.

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

The Hong Kong films released in 2025 ranked from worst to best

It was a rough year for Hong Kong cinema – only Another World made more than HK$14 million locally – but there were still some gems released.

American cinema

How The Joy Luck Club opened the door for majority-Asian casts in Hollywood

The Joy Luck Club (1993) is a complex tale of intergenerational trauma focusing on four Chinese mothers and their daughters in San Francisco.

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Lisa Lu (left) and Rosalind Chao in a still from The Joy Luck Club (1993). The film stands as only the second Hollywood film ever to tell a contemporary story with a majority Asian cast – the first, Flower Drum Song, had arrived 32 years prior.