As Tears Go By (film)
| As Tears Go By | |
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| Traditional | 旺角卡門 |
| Simplified | 旺角卡门 |
| Mandarin | Wàngjiǎo Kǎmén |
| Cantonese | Wong6gok3 Kaa1mun4 |
| Literally | Mong Kok Carmen |
| Directed by | Wong Kar-wai |
| Produced by | Alan Tang |
| Written by |
Jeffrey Lau Wong Kar-wai |
| Starring |
Andy Lau Maggie Cheung Jacky Cheung |
| Music by | Danny Chung Teddy Robin |
| Cinematography | Andrew Lau |
| Edited by | Cheung Pei-tak William Chang (uncredited) |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | Kino International |
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Release date
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Running time
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102 minutes |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Cantonese |
| Box office | HK$11,532,283 (Hong Kong) $9,436 (United States) |
As Tears Go By is a 1988 Hong Kong action drama film that was the directorial debut of Wong Kar-wai and starred Andy Lau, Maggie Cheung and Jacky Cheung. Critics have compared the film to Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets, as the central plot revolves around a small-time gangster (Lau) trying to keep his friend (Cheung) out of trouble. It also screened at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival, during Directors' Fortnight.
The film centers around Wah (Lau), a mob enforcer who primarily deals with debt collection. His brother Fly (Jacky Cheung) also works for the mob, but is less successful and not as well respected as Wah, frequently causing trouble and borrowing money he can't pay back. Out of the blue, Wah receives a call from his aunt, informing him that his younger cousin Ngor (Maggie Cheung), whom he has never met before, will be coming to stay with him in Hong Kong for the next few days. Ngor works at her family's restaurant on Lantau Island, but due to a malfunctioning lung, must come to Hong Kong for a medical procedure.
Soon after Ngor arrives at his apartment, Wah unexpectedly leaves to help Fly collect a debt. After the job, Wah goes to see his girlfriend, Mabel, who dumps him because he had been so distant and unresponsive to her calls. Due to this, she aborted his baby, though he was unaware she was pregnant in the first place. Wah stumbles home angry and drunk, but when Ngor tries to console him later that night, he becomes very aggressive and threatens to throw her out. The next morning, Wah apologizes to Ngor and offers to take her to out to a movie to make up for his behavior.
Meanwhile, in order to make money to pay off a loan to fellow gang member Tony (Man), Fly makes an unreasonably high bet in a game of snooker. When he realizes there is no chance he can win or pay his debt, he makes a run for it with his friend Site (Wong). After a chase through the streets, Fly and Site are caught and severely beat by members of Tony's gang. As Wah and Ngor are about to leave the apartment, Fly arrives bruised and bloody, carrying an unconscious Site. Wah and Ngor treat their wounds, which causes Ngor to question Wah's line of work. The next day, she returns to Lantau, leaving Wah a note asking him to come visit her sometime.
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Wikipedia