Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind
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Polish premiereTheatrical Screenings
Muranów
Kinoteka 4
Online Availability
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Film description
Three young boys wander through the concrete jungle of Hong Kong, planning petty acts of delinquency. One day, they are joined by Wan-chu – a beautiful yet psychopathic girl who blackmails them into far more dangerous escalations. During one of their escapades, the group comes into possession of property belonging to American arms dealers, making a deadly confrontation inevitable. Frustrated by the cold reception of his first two feature films, Tsui Hark set out to flip the bird to the world with his third. The result was a work so radically nihilistic that it is nearly impossible to identify with – or feel any sympathy for – any of its characters. The film’s original cut proved so socially subversive that the colonial authorities enforced censorship cuts, a rare occurrence in Hong Kong at the time. Intrigued by the surrounding scandal and political undertones, audiences flocked to the cinemas, delivering Tsui his first commercial success. By then, however, he had already decided to move away from New Wave experimentation in order to focus on mainstream productions. Today, Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind remains a legendary, deeply unsettling, and continually fascinating landmark of Hong Kong cinema.
text:
Marcin Krasnowolski
Tsui Hark
A Hong Kong filmmaker of Vietnamese descent, he was born in 1950 and is widely regarded as one of the most versatile and influential figures in the history of popular world cinema. His first three films, considered landmark works of the Hong Kong New Wave, were not box-office hits, but they continue to astonish with their inventiveness and wealth of influences. It was only when Hark turned to commercial filmmaking that he truly demonstrated the full extent of his abilities, quickly establishing himself as a leading figure in mainstream cinema. From 1984 onwards, he also shaped the careers of key directors and actors, and above all actresses, as a producer. Many of them have since gone on to achieve international success. Thanks to his boundless energy and constant drive to explore new forms of cinematic expression, Hong Kong cinema developed a distinctive identity that helped turn it into a compelling export. Tsui Hark now works primarily in the Chinese film industry, making big-budget blockbusters.
1979 Zabójcze motyle / Dié Biàn / The Butterfly Murders
1980 Niebezpieczne spotkania pierwszego stopnia / Di yi lei xing wei xian / Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind
1984 Shànghǎi zhī yè / Shanghai Blues
1986 Kaczka po pekińsku / Dāo Mǎ Dàn / Peking Opera Blues
1989 Mistrz / Huang Fei Hong jiu er zhi long xing tian xia / The Master
1991 Dawno temu w Chinach / Wong Fei Hung / Once Upon a Time in China
1991 Bankiet / Hao men ye yan / The Banquet
1995 Ostrze / Dao / The Blade
1995 Chińska uczta / Gam yuk moon tong / The Chinese Feast
2005 Siedem mieczy / Qī Jiàn / Seven Swords
2011 Latąjace miecze ze Smoczej Bramy / Lóng Mén Fēi Jiǎ / Flying Swords of Dragon Gate
2021 Chángjīn hú / The Battle at Lake Changjin
2022 Chángjīn Hú zhī Shuǐmén Qiáo / The Battle at Lake Changjin II
