May You Stay Forever Young (2021)

Original title

少年

Directed by

Ren Xia

Genre

drama

Country

Hong Kong

Runtime

1h 26m

Rating

6.0 of 10 from 8 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

Set during the 2019 Hong Kong protests, a group of protesters, volunteers, and a social worker form a rescue team to find a young girl who is thinking about suicide. The story follows their efforts amid real protest footage.

urgenttensemelancholicgrittydocumentary-styleemotionally heavysuspensefulgrounded

What happens

May You Stay Forever Young (Chinese: 少年) is a 2021 Hong Kong drama film directed by Rex Ren and Lam Sum, written and produced by Ren and Daniel Chan. The film, set in the background of the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests, was produced by Phone Made Good Film and stars an ensemble cast of nine. It focuses on a group of Hongkongers, including protesters, volunteers, and a social worker, who form a rescue team in an attempt to find and save a young girl (Yu Tsz-wing) struggling with suicidal thoughts amid the protests. Documented footage of the protests is also included in the film. Following the 12 June 2019 Hong Kong protest and the death of Marco Leung Ling-kit, a wave of suicides emerged in Hong Kong, prompting the formation of volunteer teams by the protesters to locate and rescue those in attempts to suicide. Rex Ren was intrigued and envisioned a narrative based on the volunteer efforts, co-writing the story with Daniel Chan under the working title We from July to September 2019. Principal photography began in October but was suspended in November, leading to shifts in funding and significant changes in the cast and crew before production resumed in September 2020. Post-production was completed in October 2021, featuring a score composed by Akitsugu Fukushima. Filmmakers Shu Kei and Fruit Chan also contributed to the film's creation. In May 2021, the film was submitted for review to the Office for Film, Newspaper, and Article Administration, but was not approved, marking it the first film banned for screening in Hong Kong following the amendment of the Film Censorship Ordinance. The film was also banned in Malaysia for allegedly glorifying violence and risking China–Malaysia relations. It had its world premiere at the 2021 Golden Horse Film Festival on 15 November 2021, and was subsequently released in theatres in Taiwan, the United States, and Japan. The film won a NETPAC Award and received generally positive reviews from critics for its subject matter, realistic portrayal of protesters, and aesthetics, though it faced criticism for its narrative and thematic depth. In December 2024, it was publicly released on YouTube to support the coinciding Bluebird Movement in Taiwan. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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