Hong Kong Film Awards preview

The 44th Hong Kong Film Awards arrive on Sunday, April 19, with “Ciao UFO” emerging as the film many local critics expect to beat. (scmp.com) The Hong Kong Film Awards Association says the ceremony will be held at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui, with nominations announced on February 10. (hkfaa.com) The nominations race is led by “Sons of the Neon Night” with 12 nods, followed by “Back to the Past” with 11 and “Ciao UFO” with 10, according to the full nominations list published by the South China Morning Post. (scmp.com) Best picture nominees are “Back to the Past,” “Another World,” “Ciao UFO,” “Sons of the Neon Night” and “She’s Got No Name.” Best director nominees include Patrick Leung Pak-kin for “Ciao UFO,” Shu Qi for “Girl,” Tommy Ng Kai-chung for “Another World,” Jonathan Li and Chou Man-yu for “Behind the Shadows,” and Peter Chan Ho-sun with Han Shuai for “She’s Got No Name.” (scmp.com; hkfaa.com) “Ciao UFO” has become the consensus pick in part because it already won top prizes from the Hong Kong Film Critics Society and the Hong Kong Film Directors’ Guild, giving it momentum beyond the nomination count. (scmp.com; thehive.asia) The film, directed by Patrick Leung, follows three childhood friends linked by a 1985 unidentified flying object sighting at Wah Fu Estate, and the awards association says it picked up 10 nominations including best film and best director. (hkfaa.com) This year’s race has also been overshadowed by a dispute over four films that were removed from the contenders list in January: “Valley of the Shadow of Death,” “Vital Signs,” “Finch & Midland” and “Mother Bhumi.” The South China Morning Post reported that no public explanation had been given when the exclusions surfaced. (scmp.com; hongkongfp.com) That dispute matters because the South China Morning Post said the dropped titles included realistic acting contenders such as Anthony Wong Chau-sang and Fan Bingbing, and because the association’s February 10 nominations event did not publicly address the removals. (scmp.com; scmp.com) The broader field also says something about Hong Kong cinema’s release pipeline in 2025. The South China Morning Post described the leading contenders as delayed “urban myth” projects that finished years ago but only reached cinemas last year. (scmp.com) Sunday’s ceremony will be broadcast live on ViuTV 99, with the red carpet scheduled for 4:30 p.m. and the awards presentation for 7:30 p.m. Hong Kong time. (stheadline.com) If the pre-ceremony mood holds, the night could turn on whether “Ciao UFO” converts critical support into best picture and best director wins in a year when the awards themselves are under unusual scrutiny. (scmp.com)