END OF LOVE

Hong Kong/China, 2009, 95 minutes, Colour.
Chi Kin Lee, Guthrie Yip, Ben Yeung.
Directed by Simon Chung.

A slice of Hong Kong life and a familiar enough story.

A young man works in clothes sales and is picked up by a customer, caught with this man by his mother, ousted from his house. His mother, ashamed, leaps to her death from the apartment window.

The young man is gay and takes up the life of his new flatmate, drugs and prostitution, until a party is raided and he is sent to a Christian reform institution in the country, an evangelical house with strict rules, much Jesus talk and prayer, Pentecostal style. He becomes friendly with the ex-heroin addict and volunteer who is assigned to look after him. When he gets out, he goes to stay with this friend and his petulant girlfriend.

The potential for change is always there but life tends to be hard and old habits are difficult to kick.

What will now happen to the young man? What choices will he make?

1.A Hong Kong story, the focus on men, the reformatory, lives and problems?

2.The scenes of Hong Kong City, the cityscapes, the shops and apartments, the drug scene? The reform institute out in the countryside? Realistic? Musical score?

3.The title for each of the characters? For Ming and his choices for the future? For Yan and the end of his relationship? For Keung and his disillusionment with Jackie, his death? Jackie and her self-centredness?

4.The portrait of Ming, working in the shop, Yan as a customer, the come-on, the relationship, the mother seeing them, her suicide and Ming’s upset, leaving the apartment? Moving in with Cyrus, with his friends, the wealthy man, the rent boy, drugs, Yan and his pursuing him, the on-and-off relationship, Yan and organising the drug bust?

5.Ming and his sentence, driving to the institution, the head of the institution and his strict rules, the Christian perspective, prayer, grace before meals, praying in tongues? Keung and his being appointed to look after Ming? Making the noodles for him, talking, sharing the room, getting up in the night, smoking and the reaction of the head? Ming and the haircut? Burning rocks as punishment? The friendship with Keung, seeing him go?

6.Ming finishing his sentence, going to Keung, meeting Jackie, her offhanded attitude towards him? Work in the hair salon, the customers, the other workers, getting some money, paying the rent, the possibility of a new life? Jackie and her flirting? Keung and his upset, going back on the heroin? Ming helping him, his reaction to Jackie? Jackie leaving? Going to see Cyrus, wanting some more jobs, Cyrus being cautious about the police? Keung, the OD? The rescue of Ming on top of the roof?

7.Yan, his relationship with Ming, looking after his father, his brutality, Ming wanting to borrow the money, the break with Yan after the sexual encounter?

8.Cyrus, his way of life, being on remand?

9.Ming’s future?

10.Contemporary life for the young in Hong Kong, opportunities and lack of opportunities, Hong Kong and China? The Christian reform centre, only surface change? The background of drug-taking, sexuality, relationships?