Among Hong Kong’s fantastic films, a popular recurring theme is that of the undercover agent. After all, who can forget Chow Yun-fat’s world-weary cop in City on Fire, or Tony Leung and Andy Lau’s globally famous cross-undercover enemy duo in Infernal Affairs? This summer, Tai Kwun is running a special exhibition that explores this cinematic genre, the duality of light and darkness in these characters, and what makes them so appealing to Hong Kong audiences.
Co-curated by film director Sunny Chan Wing-san and China studies assistant professor Kristof Van den Troost from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, ‘Undercover Underworld’ recreates scenes from classic crime films, showing the process of covert operations from beginning undercover missions to eventually finding difficulties in re-entering society.
Four decades’ worth of covert police operations in Hong Kong films are represented in this show, including Alex Cheung’s Man on the Brink (1981), Ringo Lam’s City on Fire (1987), John Woo’s Hard Boiled (1992), Andrew Lau and Alan Mak’s Infernal Affairs (2002), Benny Chan’s The White Storm (2013), and more. See recreations of beloved scenes from this movie genre, such as the iconic tea house shoot out in Hard Boiled, the psychiatrist’s office in Infernal Affairs, a gun fight in a hideout in City on Fire, and most dramatically, a disastrous car chase breaking the fourth wall, where visitors can either play a role on set or pose from the director’s chair behind the camera.
Hear from exclusive video interviews with award-winning filmmakers and actors who have worked on undercover films, such as Louis Koo, Tsui Hark, Alan Mak, Alex Cheung, and more, along with some behind-the-scenes snippets from their movies. They delve into how Hong Kong’s cinematic reputation has much to owe to our undercover agents, both real and fictional, as they struggle between justice and evil. And if you’re thinking those heightened, tense emotions are just movie magic, you’d be wrong. This exhibition also features interviews with former undercover agents in real life, psychologists, and other professionals, who are able to contrast and balance true experiences with how undercover living is fictionalised.
‘Undercover Underworld’ will run until October 5, in the Police Headquarters Block of Tai Kwun. Tickets cost $25, with concessions available and free entry for children aged four and below. Ticketholders will also be able to unlock a limited-time secret cocktail menu at 001, the speakeasy-style bar.
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