A Companion to Hong Kong Cinema - 9780470659281

"Given the drastic and dramatic changes in Hong Kong and its cinema in the past two decades, A Companion to Hong Kong Cinema is the perfect travelling partner for finding one's way through the twists, turns, and reversals of the city's film history and contemporary scene. Vast changes in economics, technologies, politics, cultures, and new relations to the Mainland and Asian neighbors make a guide essential, and this anthology provides needed signposts and detailed maps of an urban cultural geography ranging from underground media passages to lofty screen overlooks. Beginning student or fanboy/fangirl enthusiast, determined critic or advanced researcher, all will find this companion a boon friend and reliable buddy."

Chuck Kleinhans, Northwestern University and Co-editor. JUMP CUT

A Companion to Hong Kong Cinema represents the first comprehensive exploration of this unique global cinema. By embracing the interdisciplinary approach of contemporary film and cultural studies, this collection navigates theoretical debates while charting a new course for future research in Hong Kong film.

Featuring original contributions from both established and emerging film scholars, these essays offer cutting-edge theoretical perspectives on a broad range of established and emerging topics in the field and reveal how evolving approaches to historiography, sexuality, and colonialism have shaped our understanding of Hong Kong film history. The book also poses philosophical questions concerning how we understand what we see on screen in Hong Kong cinema and how we make sense of this knowledge. Building on this theoretical framework, the volume explores various aspects of Hong Kong film culture within geographic, aesthetic, institutional, cultural, and scholarly contexts.

Innovative and thought-provoking, A Companion to Hong Kong Cinema is an essential resource on the state of contemporary scholarship relating to one of the most dynamic cinematic traditions in international film.