Rashomon Hong Kong

That is the name of a movie filmed mostly in Hong Kong during the unrest in 2019 to 2020 by British director Malcolm Clarke, a two-time Oscar-winning director for best documentary short subject in 1989 and 2013. Clarke was interviewed by Pearl Lam who, in turn, is a Hong Kong born gallerist, patron and curator, who is recognized as a leading authority on Asian contemporary art and design, and who is regarded as one of the most instantly recognizable gallerists globally due to her unique personal style. She opened her first permanent gallery in Shanghai in 2005. In 2012, she opened a branch in Hong Kong, at Ruttonjee House on Duddell Street, followed by a second gallery space at SOHO Sheung Wan in 2015. In between, she opened a branch in Singapore in 2014.

Pearl Lam has since opened more branches and had other achievements, but I want to focus on her latest project, the Pearl Lam Podcast which she launched in 2023, featuring thought provoking discussions with influential people around the world, seeking to inspire, inform and push the boundaries of conventional thinking. Two weeks ago, she interviewed Malcolm Clarke on her Pearl Lam Podcast. They covered many issues in the hour-long programme, from his work in the early days to his first visit to China where he couldn’t make any film before he was kicked out of the country and from where he went to Japan and was asked by his supervisor on the phone to make a film there anyway, which he did. He later visited China and lived there a bit, and in the process learned more about the country, the people and their culture. Clarke is a reasonably fair person and always tries to present a balanced view through his work, unlike quite a few of his colleagues in the trade these days whom he said were not doing justice to the profession or to humanity (my interpretation). That was why he was so upset when his film about the turmoil in Hong Kong was rejected in the top three film festivals – in San Sebastian, in Venice and in Berlin – on grounds that, “It was too pro-china.”

Clarke told Lam that he was inspired in the project by the original Rashomon, a 1950 classic filmed as a Japanese psychological thriller and directed by Akira Kurosawa, which had inspired other films, some with adaption, including a 1964 film directed by Martin Ritt featuring Paul Newman – The Outrage. Clarke had started off wanting to make a documentary, but then aborted the plan for fears over potential doxing and death threats. The movie eventually became a hybrid, with interviews and featured a story of an engaged couple who later broke up because of politics. Clarke had said, “Let’s not make a yellow film. Let’s not make a blue film. Let’s try to drive this movie down the middle road and speak to people on both sides” Clarke also said that the journalists did “an appalling job” of covering the Hong Kong issue over the eventually scrapped anti-fugitive law amendment bill.

Clarke stressed that the film wasn’t pro-China at all, “not even a bit pro-China.” What his film festival friends were actually telling him was that he was not anti-China enough, adding that “In these days, if you are not anti-China in my business, then you are pro-China.” He said that Hong Kong was being politically manipulated while former US president Trump demonized China by calling it “the new evil empire.” He ended with the remark that, “Soft power is power. China needs to improve its game. China has so much to be proud of, so much that they’ve achieved.” Pearl Lam actually agreed with most of what he said about the film, about China and about the West’s narratives on China.

Meanwhile, Su and I joined my Rotary Club members for a weekend trip in Foshan, featuring lots of good food and fellowship. On a bus trip on Sunday morning, we learned of the assassination attempt of Trump; and the rest is history. Politics in the US evolved so fast and in one week, we heard Biden announced his decision to quit the next election and to support his deputy as his Party’s presidential nominee. We have been presented with different views on what had happened, was happening and might be happening. It was another Rashomon in the making.

While we were in Foshan, we found that the RMB (over 3000) in my We Chat account was frozen, because rules on phone numbers and we chat accounts had changed since my account was opened some ten years ago with the help of some young friends. Interestingly, money can come into the account but can’t go out, unless I changed the registration to my real name as recorded in my Home Return Permit and backed up with a phone account under the same name and created in China. My nephew’s wife managed to make adjustments to my We Chat Pay HK account which can now accept and remit HK dollars, but I spent the week between service providers learning how they charge phone subscribers on various exotic plans, ending with a day-return trip to Futian yesterday, visiting China Mobile and the HSBC China branch at Futian. It was somewhat eye-opening. Interestingly, the bank was exactly the same branch Su and I visited five years ago in 2019, but since when the bank had frozen my account and so son. To cut the long story short, I have now acquired a valid phone number operable in all of China and had my HSBC China bank account re-activated with both HKD and RMB sub-accounts. I went to my Mei Foo Branch and tried to have my We Chat account re-activated, but was told to wait, maybe a few days, till the HSBC China account and the new China Mobile phone number can talk to each other.

While in Futian, Su found a shop which provided her the hot pot meal she had longed for five years, and she was happy, which is what matters.

I had other horror stories, including how I was recently led by the nose to pay for some anti-virus packages which didn’t exactly work, but I would spare you of that; and I hope to talk to you sooner next time.