Ho-Cheung Pang - Isabella (2006)-Cinema of the World

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Ho-Cheung Pang - Isabella (2006)

Gönderen anybody

IMDB

As if a corruption charge and the prospect of the incoming Chinese government isn’t enough to depress Macau police officer Shing, his bachelor habits are turned upside down by the unexpected arrival of the daughter he never knew he had, in this beautiful elegy to times past and chances lost.

Some opinions:
"This winner of the 2006 Silver Berlin Bear for Best Film Music has considerably more to offer..."
“A glorious, romanticized look at Macau”
“Isabella won the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival for best music – very deservedly so.”
"All told, I have to resort to an often used, but quite apt, simple and short description to summarise "Isabella" – a gem."
"Isabella works wonders with mood and performance"
"Many people have compared Pang Ho-Cheung stylistically to Wong Kar-Wai, but while his fellow director incessantly and yearningly speaks of lost or inaccessible love, Pang tells us a much simpler story projecting a world in which the most daring dreams are likely to be fulfilled."
"Isabella is artful and undeniably gorgeous"

On the eve of Macau’s handover to China, police officer SHING (Chapman To) is having the worst time of his life. Suspended for suspected corruption, he tries to find solace with an elfin creature by the name of YAN (Isabella Leong) whom he just picks up. As he tries to smooth-talk her to bed, she suddenly snaps back with the biggest turn-off imaginable: that she is the daughter he never knew existed!

While Shing desperately tries to hold himself together, his bachelor life inevitably falls apart as Yan insists on living under his roof. Together the two of them start roaming through exotic Macau, tracking down Yan’s missing puppy and striving to get to know each other. No sooner has Shing grown into his new role as a father than he finds his hands full: when Yan is not fighting with his girlfriend KATE (Meme Tian), she is being bothered by her dorky classmate (Derek Tsang).

Will the newfound father and daughter, who have given up hope along the way, be able to find the true vocation of their lives at last?

The backstory to this socially frowned-upon pairing: many moons ago, Shing loved and left Yan's mom (J.J. Jia), who gave birth to and raised Yan without Shing's knowledge. Yan's mom also recently passed away, leaving Yan without guidance or enough money to placate the obnoxious landlord (Jim Chim in another Edmond Pang-appointed cameo). Shing isn't too keen on having Yan hang around him at first, but eventually he gives in, helping her look for Isabella, as well as simply spending time with her. So begins an odd, and even touching father-daughter romance, punctuated less by actual events than by mood, minor shifts in emotion, and a glorious, romanticized look at Macau. Basically, we watch as Yan becomes a part of Shing's life, first as an annoyance, then as an accepted relative, and finally as a cherished daughter. There are some actual events and even surprises along the way, but most of Isabella can be summed up in mood. It starts, it progresses, and then it ends. Along the way, there's laughs, tears, and many glimpses of Isabella Leong's bare legs and Chapman To's bare torso. Despite that latter detail, this is a film worth seeing.