The Midnight After,《那夜凌晨，我坐上了旺角開往大埔的紅VAN》

Doomsday or A New Begging?

The Midnight After,《那夜凌晨，我坐上了旺角開往大埔的紅VAN》

Starring: Simon Yam, Wong You-nam, Janice Man, Lam Suet, Kara Hui, Chiu Tien- you.

Director: Fruit Chan

Category: III

“This is a local Hong Kong movie!” said Fruit Chan.

The promotion campaign of the movie has continually emphasized the value of Hong Kong. Fruit Chan warned“If you do not have the cultural framework of Hong Kong, you would not understand the context.” It is excited to see how Fruit Chan turns a science fiction into political metaphor, and criticized the current Hong Kong society. The director Fruit Chan Gor gains his reputation with his success after a series of film about 1997, the handover to China, “Made in Hong Kong”, “The Longest Summer” and “Little Cheung”.  

The storied 17 minibus passengers who discover they went to future of Hong Kong in 2018 and are only left alive people in the city, after the late night ride from Mong Kok to Tai Po. Unfortunately, these 17 passengers are successively killed by unknown virus. The virus is infectious, but not everyone infected would onset.

After passing the Lion Rock Tunnel, shortly everything disappeared. At the very first, 14 passengers who stay inside the van, do not believed they are the only left alive people; they being suspect, panic and even tries to pretend it is normal. The background setting of the story is not very familiar? What I find here is the late night, is representing the night of Hong Kong handover from Britain to China, soon we discover things around us is changing; the postbox from red turns to green, the flag from blue to red. Hongkongers was terrified to the China government, but most of us cannot resist the changing. Just like the passenger Sis- Ying (Kara Hui) reminds, “This is our fate!” We have nothing to deal with the situation, instead of keep moving on.

They decided to live together in a Cha Chaan Teng, and their trip- mates sequentially died mysteriously. Spring Bag (Chiu Tien-you) believed there is a virus and it can kill people invisibly, he also believed everyone was already infected. Yes, the Mainland China culture is invading and swallowing the original local Hong Kong culture. The first 3 victims are University students; our education system went to mother tongue teaching, besides many Hongkongers see how China government brutal suppression of student movement in 1989, they are threaten. Likewise, the hippy dead after he sing a song of “Major Tom”, hippy is a significant symbol of western culture, freedom, love and right. What’s more?

Recently, the term “core value” is everywhere, the politician, the official, a housewife. I am extremely hate this term, why we need to mention our value all the time and keep repeating again and again? If the value is rooted in our mind, we do not need to remind ourselves by wording. The Hong Kong is changing, as the movie said, “Our city changed irrevocably.”

Other segments, when 12 the left alive passengers decided to leave Tai Po, it suddenly raining. A bloody rain, it is so heavy; and afterward all scenes turn into slightly red color. Remember the night of handover? The red, instantly recall my mind links to China, especially the red flag.

At the end of the movie, it asked, “Where is the glory of Hong Kong came from?” When I was little, I educated the Hong Kong get succeed because of the hardworking, completed law system and so on. But now, maybe gain it from the Mainland visitors.

MAK Hoi Yan (21233952, 10458875) 570 words