September 1997, Hong Kong. Finally saw an exciting local production. For
independent films, spirit is always the most important measure, more so than
conditions of production and distribution. The polarization of mainstream and
alternative has long become obsolete and the thoughts and care that go into the
film are what really count. The production of Made In Hong Kong is
professional in both technique and style, and the outstanding performance of the
actors puts many professional actors to shame. The film is informed by forces
and emotions that flows naturally and the recreation of characters and
situations is far more realistic than any other Hong Kong films. - Loretta
Chang
Fruit Chan made this film with limited resources and money, but he manages to
make it with both commercially viability and individual style. Its photography
and structure are all accomplished. The theme of young criminals, down-to-earth
grass-root culture, expert use of housing estate locations, the mood of the
situations, even the young criminals' behavior and language ..... Everything
rings true. The director is able to accurately capture the mindset of the young
characters, such as their ideals, their desires and hopelessness, and their
sense of being abandoned. Eventually, the ending of the criminal is not death by
gang violence or arrest by police but by the ending of life, giving the
anti-heroism a touch of melancholy. - Edith Chiu
A youth-gang film without any burdens, but while it looks relaxed on the
outside, it's heavy on the inside. A youth seemingly full of possiblities is
running into deadends everywhere. With limited choices, life becomes an ordeal,
but one can still live it to its fullest. Hence a story that appears tragic is
not without life force, finding a way out in what seems like a closed domain.
Though the effort ends in failure but one can't say it's a negative attitude.
Without some of the mainstream cliches, the youth-gang story becomes ever more
interesting. - Grace Ng
Scenes, editing and production are unavoidably crude but Fruit Chan went
ahead and called it Made in Hong Kong. An ambitious effort - it is rare
that caged birds can manage to free themselves and when it does, it flies far
and high. A complete script is what is encouraging about the film, its story is
full of spirited details, telling with humor a story about a kid on the edge
that is at once sad, and about 1997. There are a lot of people who laughs at the
"Made in Hong Kong" label. Go ahead, laugh; Fruit Chan wants people to know who
has the last laugh. - Pierre Lam
Don't look at the whole thing as a miracle. Making a film with a five-men
crew is also nothing to get too worked up about. The birth of this film only
proves that determination eventually prevails. The direction of Fruit Chan is
indeed grounded, giving a literary sensibility a story about punks. He did it
with discarding the limits of identity, making this a personal story and all
that is touching comes from the heart. Perhpas all the films that talk about
"the heart" is confusing, giving filmmakers an excuse when things go wrong. But
being able to get close to the heartbeat of youths, capturing the glory of youth
right before the moment of self-destruction, indeed shows that the filmmaker
does care for them. - Ye Nianchen
From Hong Kong Film Critics
Society
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