The odd couple is a recurring narrative device and the odd-couple film a cherished mini-genre of Hong Kong cinema. The Seventh Heaven is not only one of the first odd-couple film but also one of the best. Based on either the 1927 or the 1937 Hollywood adaptation of the 1922 play by Austin Strong (all three with the same title, which the Hong Kong film also adopted), this is the story of two young men who lived in impoverished conditions on the rooftop of a seven-story building, good-naturedly termed Seventh Heaven. The film is an inspired blend of social realism and comedy, Cantonese cinema's usual and genuine concern for the lower depths informed by a touch of optimism and lightheartedness. Though the final act is flawed for its obligatory yield to suffering, the film is marked by great performances by Patrick Tse Yin and Ng Wui (who also directed), complete with that most magical of intangibles, chemistry.

12/11

(Sat)

7:30pm *

Cinema, Hong Kong Film Archive

22/11

(Tue)

7:30pm

Cinema, Hong Kong Film Archive

* Post-screening talk with Wong Ain-ling