Identity dismissed: Hong Kong leftist cinema of the 1950s

Abstract

AbstractThere has been a reconstitution of a ‘local’ identity in opposition to leftist politics in articulating recent pro-democratic activist movements in Hong Kong. In light of this context, this article examines this historical formation through the lens of using Hong Kong leftist cinema of the 1950s, especially productions from the Union Film Studio, as a case study. Through focusing on some key examples from the Hong Kong Cantonese leftist cinema of the 1950s, this paper traces the historical construction of a politicized ethical consciousness in Hong Kong poignant throughout the 1950s but became increasingly marginalized from the mid-1960s on. It argues that the class and gender analysis that post-war filmmakers made of colonial capitalism needs to be re-read in relation to a form of Chinese anti-imperial patriotism heavily marked by traumatized historical feelings from feudal, colonial and wartime experiences, driven by an emotional need for an idealized community through identifying with the underclass and the dispossessed. It proposes a reconsideration of Hong Kong’s cultural and film histories through mapping the development of this politicized film discourse which has inherited the rich tradition of Shanghai leftist cinema while fueled with an anti-colonial, anti-capitalist ethic to effectively respond to the post-war Chinese refugee-dominated society. This article problematizes the often taken-for-granted meanings and values of a Hong Kong ‘local’ identity defined as opposed to those of Mainland China, serving to perpetuate the Cold War binarism, and argues that the successful neoliberalization of Hong Kong from the 1970s on is a result of the collaborative efforts among the PRC ‘extreme left’ during the Cultural Revolution, globalized Cold War forces, KMT cultural-political demands from Taiwan, and British colonial polices, not without irony.Keywords: Sinophone cinemasHong Kong film historyHong Kong local identity and cultural politicsBritish colonial modernityCold War Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Notes1 This article is revised from a paper presented at the “Neomoralism Under Neoliberalism International Conference,” held at Lingnan University in Hong Kong in 2014.The paper draft was first translated by Ernest Fung from Chinese, then revised and shortened significantly by Yau Ching for this journal issue. I would like to particularly acknowledge the support from the reviewers whose suggestions and comments have made this paper more sound and coherent. Special thanks to Natalia Chan Lokfung in helping to confirm citations.2 I use “leftist” and “left-wing” inter-changeably in this article. Although they might have different connotations according to context, these terms refer to a community of public cultural workers with pro-socialist identifications and values in the historical context studied in this article. Likewise, “rightist,” “right-leaning” and “right-wing” for the opposite camp.3 Liao Chengzhi (1908-1983), head of the Overseas Chinese Commission and Minister of the Office of Overseas Chinese Affairs, was “the Communist Party’s specialist on Taiwan and the chief negotiator in talks with Britain on the future of Hong Kong…” http://www.nytimes.com/1983/06/11/obituaries/liao- chengzhi-75-a-chinese-leader.html4 This plot may be partly inspired by Crows and Sparrows (1949, Zheng Junli). I am indebted to one of the reviewers who made this suggestion, yet a comparison of the two films is beyond the scope of this paper.5 Adapted from “Un pour tous! Tous pour un!” from Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers which Lin Shu (1852-1924) translated as “All for one and one for all.”6 What must be emphasized, though, is that the hope in a literati-dominant nationalism has always been second skin in Union Film productions. For example, in Sworn Sisters, the person who rescues everyone from their predicament is Ah Ying (played by Tsi Lo-lin), the only literate person amongst them. At the end of the film a God-like voiceover also reminds the audience to judge the actions of the domestic workers.7 On Christmas Day, 1953, a massive fire swept the Shek Kip Mei squatter area and made 53,000 people homeless overnight.8 The complex relationship between colonial modernity, capitalism and Christianity needs to be rendered in greater depth with much more research than the scope of this paper would allow.Additional informationNotes on contributorsChing YauChing Yau is a writer, filmmaker and scholar from Hong Kong. She currently teaches at the National Central University, Taiwan. More information is available at www.yauching.com.