愛到發燒 Some Like It Hot (2008)

*第5屆香港亞洲電影節"優先放送"*

*The 5th Hong Kong Asia Film Festival "Festival Gala"*

電影預告片 Movie Trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Zm4QIuiElg

監製：伍健雄

編劇/導演：林震宇

主演：趙碩之、李柏煥、何尚謙、葉運強、余曉彤

出品：香港星跨媒體有限公司

HK/2008/Color/HDV/95min

故事：阿木(李柏煥飾)一朝醒來，頭暈身熱，感覺發燒。阿櫻(趙碩之飾) 忽然來電，有急事要阿木立即出現。

故事一：一切在髮型屋開始

前晚，阿櫻失戀，急電阿木陪伴。阿櫻向阿木道來一段關於她戀上髮型師阿賓(張嘉倫飾)的往事，阿櫻多番暗示愛意，阿賓像是未有反應，阿櫻懷疑阿賓搭上另一女子。

故事二：我們都愛乒乓波

今早，阿木踏單車急忙往找阿櫻途中，重遇髮型師阿甘(葉運強飾)，勾起二人過去一段錯摸的同性情緣。二人在公園邂逅，一起打乒乓球，共度了歡樂時刻，阿甘自覺要積極抓緊這次可能是關乎終身幸福的機遇。

故事三：一張梳化兩份坐

阿櫻失戀，回家路上，遇上醉酒佬阿萊(何尚謙飾)。阿萊同樣失戀，更要賣掉與女友蘇兒(余曉彤飾)一同擁有的古董梳化，梳化背後有離奇的故事。

在寂寞的一夜，阿櫻對執著愛情的阿萊產生好感……

對阿櫻不離不棄又發燒的阿木，難道又要做後備情人？

人人失戀，人人愛戀，三段戀愛插曲，構成有笑有淚的戀之初夏。

導演的話：

《愛到發燒》與林子祥的歌無關，但因為男主角發燒而聯想出來的愛情故事，就同我自己有關。每當有病躺在床上，就想起有伴侶照顧是多麼好──獨居男女會明白這一點。我很少像林子祥的歌一樣，為了一個女孩子而抓狂，但我在想，假如是為了一個喜歡的女孩而不慎冷病發燒，情況又如何？這個人會值得人同情。人是自私的，願意為喜歡的人做很多事(不是任何事)，談情說愛最吸引人的地方，正是雙方都願意為對方做很多事，很多可能又帶點傻。美國樂評人Rob Sheffield寫的愛情自傳裡，有句說話：「戀愛叫我幹傻事，幸好我學得早」──寫得真好，他真是懂得享受愛情的人。

談情說愛是生活的養份，戀愛是一種學習，失戀是一次成長。《愛到發燒》充滿戀愛失戀又再戀的精力，熱情澎湃，有笑有淚──對，戀愛是很累人的事，幸好我不怕累。

(原刊於「第5屆香港亞洲電影節」場刊)

Producer: Ng Kin Hung

Screenplay & Director: Pierre Lam

Starring: Wylie Chiu, Brian Li, James Ho, Jason Yip, Hidy Yu

Presents: Hong Kong Star X-Media Ltd.

HK/2008/Color/HDV/95min

Story: When the sun rises, Wood (Brian Li) found he got serious fever. At this moment, Ying (Wylie Chiu) suddenly called him to show up immediately. It seemed there was something urgent.

Episode 1: Everything Starts at Hair Inn

Last night, Ying called up Wood for company as she was being heart-broken. Ying told Wood that the past in which she fell for a hair stylist, Ben. Ying gave Ben love hint again and again, but it didn’t work. Perhaps, Ben was seeing someone else.

Episode 2: We all love Ping Pong.

In the morning, Wood re-encountered the hair stylist, Kim (Jason Yip), who recalled their past ambiguous gay love, when Wood was on the way to Ying by his bicycle. They encountered, played Ping Pong, and had happy hour together. Though, Kim realized that he had to grasp this chance that might be a great deal to the happiness of his whole life.

Episode 3: One Sofa.

Heart-broken Ying met a drunker, Roy (James Ho) on the way home. At the same time, Roy also fell out of love with his girlfriend, Zoie (Hidy Yu) and wanted to sell their antique sofa, which had an extraordinary story behind.

At a lonely night, Ying was impressed by Roy’s persistence toward love.

Can feverish Wood use his endless love to move Ying?

Some like it hot, some like it feverish. It comes out an unforgettable summer love. 

Director's Statement:

The Chinese title of this film has nothing to do with George Lam's hit song, but the love story that comes form a feverish male lead is somehow related to myself: when i fall ill and have to stay in bed, I think about how nice it would be to have a partner who will take care of me- those who live alone will certainly understand my sentiment. I rarely fall head over heels for a woman, but I do wonder, catching a cold and suffering from high fever because of a girl I like will probably win me some sympathy. We humans are selfish; but we're willing to do a lot of things (not anything though) for people we like. The best thing about being in love is that both parties are willing to do a lot of thing for the other person, which is a tad stupid. The American music critic Rob Sheffield nailed it in his autobiography on love: "Love makes me do stupid things- fortunately I learnt my lesson early." He certain knows how to enjoy love. Being in love is a nutrient to life. To love is to learn; to be crossed in love is to grow up. SOME LIKE IT HOT is filled with energies: fall in love, fall out of love, fall in love all over again. There's passion, there's laughter and there's tears. Indeed, love is exhausting. I'm not easily exhausted, fortunately.  

(Originated from the 5th Hong Kong Asia Film Festival booklet)

我是貓 The Cat of Hollywood (2004)

*第9屆韓國崟山國際電影節"新潮流導演"競賽*

*台灣鬼魅影展"閉幕電影"*

*第1屆香港亞洲電影節*

*香港國際電影節"神秘放映"*

*The 9th Pusan International Film Festival "New Current" in competition.*

*2004 Taiwan Phantom Film Festival "Closing Film"*

*1st Hong Kong Asia Film Festival*

*Hong Kong International Film Festival "Mystic Show"*

電影片段 Movie Trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXopDyqyx_c

監製：林震宇

編劇/導演：林震宇

主演：黎國輝、朱倩儀、鄭煥美、葉運強、陳自瑤、黃翠儀

HK/2004/Color/DV/90min

故事：香港中環荷李活道，是酒吧林立慾望之地，是眾多流浪貓棲息之所。

中年男上司「陳先生」，神秘地從樓梯滾下跌死事件，是意外嗎？

年青修路工人「阿修」在案發現場附近工作，受到流浪貓的感召，已過去的人和事，彷彿迴轉重生。

山城上的百級樓梯，是血案現場，是夢魘開端，是情色陷阱。

色情男女醉生夢死，流浪貓兒睥睨眾生。

情迷錯亂、顛倒逆轉、永劫回歸──

一切發生的事情，原來都跟荷李活道貓人傳說有關。


導演的話：

2003年的香港，發生了很多令人感到害怕的事：超級偶像自殺、沙士病毒殺人、經濟環境惡劣、失業問題惡化、政府施政失誤，最終令50萬名市民，在7月1日走到街頭，表達不滿。

香港人面對滿天陰霾，千頭萬緒。

《我是貓》就是透過一個神秘的貓人寓言，去反映、記錄2003年活在香港的心情。

1997年後，香港似乎再沒有什麼東西值得別人關注。

香港，其實有苦自己知。

我花掉約7千美元製作費，找來一班經驗豐富的劇場演員，捧著數碼攝錄機，走到既是我居住的地方，也是香港心藏──中環取景。

我選擇以荷李活道為故事發生現場，因為荷李活道是香港第一條被命名的街道，是香港第一間戲院落成的地方，是國際著名的古董大街。

荷李活道是神秘的，不可言喻的。這裡既是酒吧林立的慾望之地，亦是眾多流浪貓棲息之所。

更重要的是，這裡隱沒在聲色犬馬的蘭桂芳和蘇豪區之間，代表著一種繁華社會背後的荒涼，喧鬧背後的寂靜。

如果2003年香港的不幸，是令人可怕的話，我希望，荷李活道的流浪貓，可以給我們帶來一點什麼的啟示。

貓女，是永恒的慾望投射對象，愈美麗的東西，愈是危險。源源不絕的欲望：權力、愛惡、生死、情色，如幽靈般暗暗地向你招手。

我上一部影片《人造色素》(2002)，淡淡地回應了美國911恐怖事件下，都市男女的絕望愛情故事；今次《我是貓》，則以一宗迷離詭異的死亡事件，配合奇幻的電腦特技，大寫特寫一場有關無知、荒謬、痛苦、非比尋常的生死愛慾夢魘。

──活在香港，就像在看一齣驚慄片。

Producer: Pierre Lam
Screenplay & Director: Pierre Lam
Starring: Plato Lai, Phoebe Chu, Anna Cheung, Yo Yo Chen, Jason Yip, Tweety Wong
HK/2004/Color/DV/90min


Story: Hollywood Road, a luscious location filled with alluring pubs and everything that tempts the senses, is at the same time the home to many stray cats.

A man at his middle age found dead on the stairs, can such mysterious incidence purely accidental?

While working close by the death spot, a young construction worker was called by the stray cats, flashing him back into the scenes that mirror the past.

The Cat of Hollywood is a story happened on the city stairs in the mid-level. This is stairs where death took place, nightmares began and desire was trapped.

Look into the world of intense obsession through the eyes of the strayed.  See the passion, chaos, and eternal tragedy – all linked to the mysterious Hollywood Road Cat Woman.


Director's Statement:

2003 was a spine-chilling year for Hong Kong. Super idol committed suicide; SARS tortured the entire city; economy continued to stay gloomy and with the catalytic faults performed by the Government, 500,000 Hong Kong citizens expressed their grievances in the streets on July 1, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day.

Depression, threat and worry are the best answers to how life is like in Hong Kong last year.

The Cat of Hollywood reflects and documents the feel of living in Hong Kong in 2003, through a mysterious fable of a cat woman.

It seems there has been nothing about Hong Kong that deserves the world’s attention since 1997.

In fact, we all have something to tell.

I worked around an US$7,000 budget, invited a great line up of theatrical performers, picked up a digital video camera and get the set going in Central – the place where I live, the heart of Hong Kong.

Hollywood Road, with its enticing background, is chosen to be the stage on which the story takes place – it is the first officially named street, it is the home to Hong Kong’s first cinema and now, it is an internationally-known street featuring oriental antiques.

The mysterious beauty of Hollywood Road is beyond words. Chic bars and stray cats are all housed here. What’s more interesting is, Hollywood Road is a quiet backdrop to the indulgent Soho/Lan Kwai Fong district and thus it represents the ice-cold solitude sitting behind the red-hot prosperity; while its quietness creates sharp contrast with the party sounds just a few blocks behind.

Seeing those misfortune happened to Hong Kong in 2003, I wish, the stray cats living in Hollywood Street are able to bring us some inspiration.

Cat woman, a gorgeous subject to symbolize eternal desire, the more beautiful it is, the more dangerous. Desire is endless, be it power, love and hate, life and death or human passion. Our minds are constantly lured by these dark spirits.

My last film Fall in Love too Easily (2002) softly reacted to the 911 terrorist attack by telling a despairing love story in a city; now with The Cat of Hollywood, through a mysterious murder and magical computer-generated effects, I have a nightmarish tale that zooms into the innocence, absurdity, pain and rarity of a threatening death-and-passion story.

Life in Hong Kong is a thriller experience.

人造色素 Fall In Love Too Easily (2002)

*香港獨立電影節選映*

*台灣/新竹/高雄三地獨立電影展*

*Hong Kong Independent Film Festival*

*Taiwan/HsinChu/KaoHsiung Independent Film Festival*

電影預告片 Movie Trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KnYBXLH6Gs

監製：張偉雄

編劇/導演：林震宇

音樂：湯惠德

主演：盧家威、吳月霞、駱維、郭茵玄

HK/2002/Color/DV/90min

故事：2001年九月，香港中環。

小號手William跟蹤了性感的Sin多天，一直不敢相信的，是個人慾望竟然鋪天蓋地溶化理智。他在宗教信仰與情感之間糾纏自責，性是牛油和麵包，唯有在浴室對鏡自憐，才能看清自己。壓抑的城市壓扁了年青的愛，扭曲了尋常的慾。

Sin也不好過，情心種在荒土上，米舖伙記阿維心如止水，Sin主動示愛，阿維卻溫溫吞吞不明不白，對Sin來說，是否香港每個男人都是如此罪過？

阿維其實心有所屬，只是愛不出口。籃球場偶遇失落的William，二人努力地打球，還談到理想、生活與愛情。二人在燈影下嘻哈大笑，忘記了昨日、明天。

三人的感情遊戲，原來被神秘的Rain暗中監視。苦悶的辦公室女郎Rain，自得其樂偷看三個癡男怨女事態進展，甚至搗亂搞破壞。可是愈看愈捲入漩渦，不能自拔。看與被看，不過一線之差，迷局當中冷不防原來自己都變成主角。

一個突變的晚上，時代廣場仍然人流如鯽，城市依舊滾動，只是，兩男兩女同時要面對年青生命中不能承受的失落。

導演的話:

1

關於理解愛，最先是少年維特。

我試過代入他的處境，愛一個不愛自己的人。完全地竭斯底理，跟對方糾纏了兩個晝夜，然後，凌晨聽到收音機在唱陳奕迅的《黃金時代》。睜大眼睛守望第三天的清晨來臨，突然，我獲得解脫。在餐廳跟她說，過了今晚，或者再沒機會坐在一起。她的眼淚，跟著奪眶而出。

非常香港的俗套愛情生活經歷。

我嘗試去理解這種愛的本質：是因對方而存在，還是一種自我沉溺。如果真正愛一個人，為什麼又會有期限，期限一過，愛就流走。

羅蘭巴特的《戀人絮語》如是說：「受挫感以情人在眼前為具體形式(我天天看見對方，但我又不因此而滿足：戀愛對像就在眼前，但在我心中的形像而言，她又不在眼前)。情人不在身邊是失卻的具體形式；我有慾望又有需要。慾望被需要所擠壓：這便是所有戀愛情感中無法擺脫的事實。」

對了，慾望被需要所擠壓。

――我似乎觸摸到一種以成就自我為目的的沉溺心態。

流連中環酒吧的日子，聽到不少有趣的愛情故事：有男人喜歡收集女人留在床上的體毛，有女人專偷取所有前度男友的手表――這種戀物投射，不難理解。

後來想起Chet Baker一首歌《I Fall in Love Too Easily》：

I fall in love too easily / I fall in love too fast

I fall in love too terribly hard / for love to ever last…

不斷重覆的歌詞，似有還無，令我對「我這麼容易愛人」的脆弱感受揮之不去。

故事劇本續漸成形了：我常自問，如果未見過一個人，可以就愛上嗎？我答：為什麼不能？城市有很多浪族，遊走日與夜，他們都感性又性感，充滿含意的目光，睥睨著每段擦身而過的偶遇。於是主角都把經歷幻代成主觀情感，編織故事，自製「色」素，期待發生。

少年維特、羅蘭巴特、Chet Baker、關於擠壓的慾望、戀物投射，一切準備就緒…

忽然來個911。徹夜難眠。

翌日，跟監製張偉雄在Starbucks喝咖啡，他問感覺如何，要不要回應？但他說可能會幾老套。九月三十日開鏡，我惱了幾天，得監製啟發，劇本改了又改，想起活地亞倫曾在《Manhattan》說過：「I’m old fashioned!」，也就心安理得老老套套拍下去。

因為，我感到自己都是處於遺失的一代。

911之夜，問自己，如果真的世界末日，會做什麼？

我有了答案。

2

2001年夏天，好像失去了些什麼。但又難以言喻，總的就是處於一種離心狀態，盲目地嚮往城市蕩遊，愁城自困，聽首情歌都會哭。沉溺至此，相信是身體髮膚面對現時社會氛圍的反應――然後有了《人造色素》。兩男兩女的感情追逐故事，熟口熟面，根本就是你與我擦身而過的拾遺。天崩地裂，人面依舊，現實本是如此。最偉大的愛情，是永不能圓的愛情。911後，我有世界末日的感覺，愛情還應該發生嗎？或者，這就是處於遺失的一代的告白。

Producer: Bryan Chang

Screenplay & Director: Pierre Lam

Music: Janet Tong

Starring: Spencer Lo, Amy Ng, Wai Lok, Sini Kwok

HK/2002/Color/DV/90min

Story: We are the generation of lost – we lose hope and love. After the devastating incidence of Sept. 11, who can bear with losing love again? First-time director Lam Chun-Yue comes up with a love story of 2 boys and 2 girls - a story of stalking, peeping, rejecting and seducing - with links to his depressive feelings towards Hong Kong at that disastrous moment. Trumpeter WILLIAM loves his instrument as well as the sexy object SIN. He has blamed himself for puzzling between his religious belief and spiritual desire. Sin is a surprisingly pure yet sexy girl who only wishes to share her first love with a colleague, WAI. Wai chooses to walk out of this relationship as he had a secret commitment with a trumpeter named Vi. All these interwoven relations have been eyed by a lonely office lady, RAIN. She enjoys being an outsider without realising that she herself has become deeply a part of the game until one night. That night, all these youngsters have to face the unbearable lost of their fragile love.

Director's Statement:

1

My journey to comprehending love starts with Young Werther.

I’ve once experienced a similar situation of falling unflinchingly for an un-requited love. The struggling indulgence had drowned me for two full days. Sheer spiritual exhaustion and sleepless nights had drained every bit of me until I heard Eason Chan’s Golden Times on the radio late at night, then I came to a sudden relief at dawn. We met in a restaurant where I told her, “We may never have the chance to spend time together after tonight…” and then tears rolled down her face.

That is a typical story of a love life in Hong Kong.

I’ve tried to understand the very nature of this kind of love: Does it happen because the object of desire exists, or, is this purely self-indulgence? If love is meant to be sure, why is it constantly labeled with an expiry date? Why can’t it be eternal?

As said in A Lover’s Discourse by Roland Barthes, “Frustration would have presence as its figure (I see the other everyday, yet I am not satisfied there by: the object is actually there yet continues, in terms of my image-repertoire, to be absent for me). Absence is the figure of privation; simultaneously, I desire and I need. Desire is squashed against need: that is the obsessive phenomenon of all amorous sentiment.”

That is the point: desire is squashed against need – from here I seemed to see a drowning attitude of self-fulfillment.

When I used to linger in bars and pubs in Central, I’ve heard many interesting stories of city love; There is a man who collects her hair left in bed; and there is a woman who collects watches from all her ex-boyfriends. Therefore, fetishism is understandable.

Then it came to my mind Chet Baker sang I Fall in Love too Easily:

I fall in love too easily / I fall in love to fast

I fall in love too terribly hard / For love to ever last

The gentle yet repetitive lyrics have further deepened my perspective towards the fragile side of love. Gradually, I saw the story forming into a screenplay in full shape. I kept asking myself the same question, “Is it possible to fall for someone who you never met?” My answer would be, “Why impossible?”

Under the city skyline lives a flock of sentimental yet sexy Bohemians. They wander through the day and night, wearing pairs of eye filled with messages, gazing into each other at every brief encounter. These characters are now transformed into the lead roles of the screenplay. They interpret their experience into private, subjective storylines, and they artificially create every possibility while longing for love to happen.

As a result, I’ve been influenced by Young Werther, Roland Barthes, Chet Baker, with stories of squashed desire and fetishism awaiting.

2 

Then the disastrous Sept. 11 incidence hit the world with shocking tragedy – adding more sleepless nights for me. The next day I met with producer Chang Wai-Hung, comparing thoughts on the incidence. We thought about responding to the disaster, however, Chang found it old fashioned to do so. The shoot then commenced on Sept. 30 with the inspirations I gained from Chang. Although I kept amending the script until the very last moment, I suddenly remembered Woody Allen’s line in Manhattan

“I’m old fashioned” flashed across my mind and then it clicked! I am happy being old fashioned, as I belong to the generation of lost.

On the night of Sept. 11, I wondered what would I do if that was the end of the world. Now I have an answer for it.