A Light Never Goes Out

 A Light Never Goes Out [2022]

Starring: Sylvia Chang, Cecilia Choi, Henick Chou

Direction by Anastasia Tsang

Language: Cantonese 

I was not expecting this movie to be as profoundly moving and beautiful as it was. My local cinema has delivered again and is now screening a selection of movies from Hong Kong. Went on the opening night at the 10.45 show (I'm never too tired for a good movie), and even though I got a free tote bag, the movie was the highlight of the experience. 

It's difficult to fully describe this movie, but what I thought was very interesting about this was the pace. It's an expectation: any movie that revolves around a death will be slow, almost mundane unless there's some spectacular plot twist or some brilliant performance. But the storyline of this movie was accompanied with short scenes of the city of Hong Kong. The death of the protagonist's husband was almost like the death of the old, neon-sign dense city of the 20th century. I did think this movie would be a slow burn, and it was in many respects, but the added interest of taking the film away from the main plot and bringing the wider history of Hong Kong to the limelight was an interesting choice, and worked very well both conceptually and in execution. 

The performances were also stellar: it was almost like Chang's decades of experience, her mainly serious, solemn character, contrasted perfectly with Chou: a relative newcomer in the industry who played a happy-go-lucky persona. 

A very tangible sense of poignance was created, which I really enjoyed. Certain scenes were very intense, and the moments of flashback were such that every member of the audience had a clear understanding of what the main theme of the film actually was. In essence, the plot was constructed in a nuanced, effective way. It wasn't too rushed, nor did it drag out unnecessarily when it didn't have to. I guess this idea of the movie not being, for lack of a better alternative 'draggy', is because of the writing.

 The development of Chang's character was on point: not too much, not too little.

It's difficult for me to critique this movie seriously, because I don't think there is anything, really, to pick apart. It did everything a good movie is supposed to: it was paced in a balanced way, the characters had chemistry, and everything was written and performed in a way which was effective and clear. The links to Hong Kong were an added bonus. 

If you ever feel like watching a Cantonese movie, this is where you should start. No doubt about it.