Review | Apart movie review: political activism meets young love in Hong Kong relationship drama
- Socially conscious Hong Kong feature films have become as rare as hen’s teeth, so treasure this one – a love story that takes place amid an Occupy Central sit-in
- Students Yin and Maryanne split up amid conflict over his ambition to be an engineer in China and her commitment to what now appears a mild form of protest
3.5/5 stars
Socially conscious Hong Kong feature films are rapidly becoming extinct. Given that commercial film financiers are allergic to content that might appear even remotely unfriendly to Beijing’s narrative, and creative expression risks being further curtailed by the ill-defined yet all-encompassing reach of the national security law, it is unlikely we will ever again see a movie make even mild mention of the city’s political reality.
All of which makes Apart feel like a last hurrah. Funded, ironically, by the Hong Kong government under its First Feature Film Initiative – it was one of the two winners in the second round of the subsidy scheme, alongside In Your Dreams (2018) – this melancholic relationship drama by Chan Chit-man, produced by veteran filmmaker Herman Yau Lai-to, looks bold today for its vivid depiction of what happened during the “umbrella movement” protests six years ago.
The year is 2014, and the romance between final-year university students Yin (Will Or Wai-lam) and Maryanne (Sofiee Ng Hoi-yan) is tested by the social unrest rocking their city. It is a reminder of how quickly Hong Kong’s democratic aspirations have faded and of the extent to which those who harbour them have, in their desperation, resorted to violence that Maryanne is seen as a radical simply for persisting with peaceful sit-ins on major city roads to fight for universal suffrage.
The political stance of Maryanne, a law student, becomes a source of conflict with Yin, an engineering student with dreams of taking scientific inventions to China. It doesn’t help that Yin’s family are vehemently on the other side of the divide. Soon enough, Maryanne’s contempt for Yin’s moderation pushes him away and into the arms of her sympathetic best friend Shi (Yoyo Fung Hoi-yui), a migrant from China.
Intercut with footage from 2014 and the early days of Hong Kong’s anti-extradition protests in 2019, as well as reconstructed dramatic scenes from the Occupy protests, Apart paints a realistic portrait of love in a time of upheaval. By avoiding overt advocacy for any political camp, Chan gives Apart space to present the contrasting views of young Hongkongers back in 2014 about their city’s prospects.
A harrowing story that concludes on the eve of more unprecedented chaos in 2019, Apart plays like a time capsule from a more idealistic past. The film has had several sold-out screenings at the Hong Kong Arts Centre since its January premiere at the Hong Kong Independent Film Festival, but the fact its producers have little hope of a commercial cinema release should tell you all you need to know about the pervading fear and paranoia in the city’s entertainment business.
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