‘Anita’ and Raging Fire’ Share Hong Kong Film Awards

variety.com:

Vivienne Chow “Anita,” the biopic of the late Canto-pop queen Anita Mui, led the race of the 40th Hong Kong Film Awards on Sunday night with five awards, including recognitions for the film’s actors and technical achievements.

But the best film and best director awards went to action thriller “Raging Fire” directed by the late Benny Chan.Sunday’s event, which was postponed from its original schedule in April, was the first in-person edition of the awards ceremony after two years of COVID hiatus — the 2020 edition was held online and 2021 was suspended.The number of films released in Hong Kong has dramatically dropped over the past years as cinemas were forced to close doors for prolonged periods under the government’s COVID measures.

As a result, this year’s event was a double edition taking in films released in both 2020 and 2021. As the first Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony held in the post-National Security Law era and the industry’s struggle during the pandemic, there was no lack of heartwarming and thoughtful messages offering encouragement and wishing perseverance to industry practitioners and creatives. “Even if we cry, we have to cry with a smile,” said veteran comedian Michael Hui, who received a lifetime achievement award.Another thread that ran through the awards ceremony was to hail the importance of Hong Kong as a hub that continues to welcome talent from different parts of the world.

Malaysian actress Fish Liew thanked Hong Kong for realizing her dreams when she won best supporting actress with her role in “Anita.” Louise Wong, who plays the film’s title role, was awarded best new performer.