The nominations for the 44th Hong Kong Film Awards were announced on the 10th. Juno Mak’s directorial work, “The Storm,” leads with 12 nominations, while Louis Koo’s “Back to the Past” follows closely with 11, and “Goodbye UFO” comes in third with 10 nominations. Shu Qi’s directorial debut “Girl” was nominated for three major awards: Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best New Director.
Louis Koo was nominated for Best Actor with both “Private Detective” and “Back to the Past.” His competitors include Louis Cheung (“Golden Boy”), Tony Leung Ka-fai (“Chasing Shadows”), and Carlos Chan (“Love Like Mine”). Raymond Lam’s performance in “Back to the Past” won high praise, with his acting described as “transformative.” However, he was surprisingly left out of the nominations. Afterward, social media was flooded with messages expressing injustice on his behalf, with comments like: “I can’t accept Raymond Lam not being nominated; he carried so much of the film, and his eyes were so expressive,” and “Why is it always like this, both at TVB and at the Film Awards.”
Patrick Tam Disheartened
Additionally, Patrick Tam played a washed-up gangster in “Desperate Man.” Many netizens had predicted he would be a contender for Best Actor, but his name was also absent from the nominations. Shortly after the nominations were announced, he wrote four Chinese characters meaning “disheartened” on social media, clearly expressing his mood, but later quietly deleted the post. When asked by reporters whether his post was about the Film Awards nominations, Tam strongly denied it, saying, “No, it was just about some personal work issues – just expressing a bit of emotion, thanks for your concern.”
For Best Actress, Zhang Ziyi is vying for the award with “The Murder in the Lane,” competing against Fala Chen (“Dream Redemption”), Louise Wong (“The Ring Finger”), Ma Li (“Dumpling Queen”), and Malaysian actress Lim Ching-Yee (“Love Like Mine”).
Shu Qi Competes for Three Awards
Stephen Fung Sends Message: If You Win, Double Victory
Stephen Fung Sends Message: If You Win, Double Victory
Shu Qi’s “Girl” Nominated for 3 Major Awards.
Last year, Shu Qi’s “Girl” made its way to the Venice Film Festival and Busan Film Festival, also winning Best Director at Busan. Although she didn’t make the application deadline for the Golden Horse Awards, she was recently nominated for three Hong Kong Film Awards as a newcomer director. Shu Qi shared the good news on social media, joyfully writing: “Grateful, thankful, touched. Thank you to all my friends in Hong Kong.” Stephen Fung also posted, noting that the Awards are usually around Shu Qi’s birthday, and congratulated his wife in advance: “Usually the Film Awards are held around your birthday, hope this year is no exception. If you win, I don’t need to buy a present – win-win.” The 44th Hong Kong Film Awards Ceremony will be held on April 19.
News sources: Apple Daily + On.cc + China Times News Network