Echoes of the Rainbow
Encyclopedia
Echoes of the Rainbow is a 2010 Hong Kong drama film directed by Alex Law
and starring Simon Yam
and Sandra Ng
. It won the Crystal Bear for the Best Film in the Children’s Jury "Generation Kplus" category at the 2010 Berlin Film Festival
.
It tells the story of a working family in Hong Kong whose eldest son, a popular boy and star athlete, becomes ill with leukemia
.
The film is set in 1960s British Hong Kong
and was shot on the historical Wing Lee Street
in Sheung Wan
. It was financed by the Hong Kong government's Film Development Fund.
.
Not long before Fang Fei leaves, Jin-Yi's grades start declining and he takes third place in a race he had hoped to win. One day he collapses suddenly after a typhoon nearly destroys the family's house, and his father takes him to the hospital, where he is diagnosed with leukemia
. His parents search for a doctor who can cure him but find none, and his condition worsens until he has to remain in the hospital, where the nurses treat him poorly and extort money from his parents in exchange for basic care. Jin-Er, who spends much of his free time stealing trinkets around town, tries to offer them all to his brother in attempt to cheer him up, but Jin-Yi doesn't accept any of them. Fang Fei returns from the United States and visits him in the hospital, where they share their first kiss, but Jin-Yi dies shortly thereafter. Years later Jin-Er, narrating retrospectively, remarks that "time is the greatest thief". In the film's final scene, Jin-Er and his mother are shown visiting Jin-Yi's grave, and Jin-Er, now a teenager, recounts a lesson Jin-Yi had taught him about double rainbow
s.
placed the film on their list of the best ten Chinese films of 2010.
Alex Law
Alex Law is a Hong Kong film director writer and producer. He is variously credited as "Law Kai Yui", "Law Kai-Yui" and "Alex Kai Yui".Law was educated at the Diocesan Boys' School, Hong Kong, matriculating in 1971...
and starring Simon Yam
Simon Yam
Simon Yam Tat-Wah , born March 19, 1955, is a Hong Kong actor and film producer.-Background:The son of a former police officer of Shangdong heritage, his father was a Hong Kong Royal Police ship captain who was murdered by his colleague....
and Sandra Ng
Sandra Ng
Sandra Ng Kwan-yu is a Hong Kong film and television actress.-Biography:The daughter of Ng Kam-chuen, Ng was born in Hong Kong, where she attended St. Stephen's Girls' College. Encouraged by her parents, she began her entertainment career at the age of 16. She is most known through her comic...
. It won the Crystal Bear for the Best Film in the Children’s Jury "Generation Kplus" category at the 2010 Berlin Film Festival
60th Berlin International Film Festival
The 60th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 11 to February 21, 2010, with Werner Herzog as President of the Jury. The opening film of the festival was Chinese director Wang Quan'an's romantic drama Apart Together, in competition, while the closing film is Japanese...
.
It tells the story of a working family in Hong Kong whose eldest son, a popular boy and star athlete, becomes ill with leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
.
The film is set in 1960s British Hong Kong
British Hong Kong
British Hong Kong refers to Hong Kong as a Crown colony and later, a British dependent territory under British administration from 1841 to 1997.- Colonial establishment :...
and was shot on the historical Wing Lee Street
Wing Lee Street
right|250px|thumb|Wing Lee Street.right|250px|thumb|Wing Lee Street.Wing Lee Street is a street in Hong Kong. It is located in Sheung Wan near Shing Wong Street, Bridges Street, Ladder Street and the Former Hollywood Road Police Married Quarters....
in Sheung Wan
Sheung Wan
Sheung Wan is an area in Hong Kong, located in the north-west of Hong Kong Island, between Central and Sai Ying Pun. Administratively, it is part of the Central and Western District...
. It was financed by the Hong Kong government's Film Development Fund.
Plot
Eight-year-old Jin-Er (who goes by the nickname Big Ears) lives with his parents and his sixteen-year-old brother Jin-Yi in a shoe shop on Wing Lee Street in late 1960s Hong Kong. Jin-Er looks up to his brother, who is a champion runner at the local high school, earns top grades, is a talented musician, and is very popular; Jin-Er's parents and teachers often scold him for not being as good as his big brother. Jin-Yi has a girlfriend, Fang Fei, who comes from a wealthy family, and whose family moves away to the United States to escape the "lawless" situation in Hong Kong. Jin-Yi gradually becomes aware of the inequalities in Hong Kong society of that time, both through interactions with a cocky British policeman who extorts money from his father in exchange for letting them keep their shop (and who insists that Jin-Yi will never "make it big" because his English isn't good enough) and through his first time seeing the inside of Fang Fei's family's mansion. Most of this is told through Jin-Er, the film's narratorNarrator
A narrator is, within any story , the fictional or non-fictional, personal or impersonal entity who tells the story to the audience. When the narrator is also a character within the story, he or she is sometimes known as the viewpoint character. The narrator is one of three entities responsible for...
.
Not long before Fang Fei leaves, Jin-Yi's grades start declining and he takes third place in a race he had hoped to win. One day he collapses suddenly after a typhoon nearly destroys the family's house, and his father takes him to the hospital, where he is diagnosed with leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
. His parents search for a doctor who can cure him but find none, and his condition worsens until he has to remain in the hospital, where the nurses treat him poorly and extort money from his parents in exchange for basic care. Jin-Er, who spends much of his free time stealing trinkets around town, tries to offer them all to his brother in attempt to cheer him up, but Jin-Yi doesn't accept any of them. Fang Fei returns from the United States and visits him in the hospital, where they share their first kiss, but Jin-Yi dies shortly thereafter. Years later Jin-Er, narrating retrospectively, remarks that "time is the greatest thief". In the film's final scene, Jin-Er and his mother are shown visiting Jin-Yi's grave, and Jin-Er, now a teenager, recounts a lesson Jin-Yi had taught him about double rainbow
Double Rainbow
A double rainbow is a phenomenon in which two rainbows appear. Double Rainbow may also refer to:* Double Rainbow , an album by Aya Matsuura* Double Rainbow: The Music of Antonio Carlos Jobim, an album by Joe Henderson...
s.
Cast
- Simon YamSimon YamSimon Yam Tat-Wah , born March 19, 1955, is a Hong Kong actor and film producer.-Background:The son of a former police officer of Shangdong heritage, his father was a Hong Kong Royal Police ship captain who was murdered by his colleague....
as Mr. Law - Sandra NgSandra NgSandra Ng Kwan-yu is a Hong Kong film and television actress.-Biography:The daughter of Ng Kam-chuen, Ng was born in Hong Kong, where she attended St. Stephen's Girls' College. Encouraged by her parents, she began her entertainment career at the age of 16. She is most known through her comic...
as Mrs. Law - Aarif LeeAarif LeeAarif Lee is an actor and Cantopop singer from Hong Kong. After singing "普通朋友" at a gathering, he was signed by Alvin Wang and Leon Lai of East Asia Record Production and became one of the new artists in 2009...
as Desmond Law - Evelyn Choi as Flora
- Paul Chun (actor)Paul Chun (actor)Paul Chun Pui is a Hong Kong based actor.He is the brother of actor David Chiang and half-brother of actor/ director Derek Yee Tung-Shing. His son Benji Chiang and his daughter Lesley Chiang are duo in the pop group "Benji and Lesley". Paul started his acting career at the age of three...
as Big Uncle/barber - Lawrence Ah MonLawrence Ah MonLawrence Ah Mon or Lawrence Lau Kwok Cheong is a Hong Kong film director. His films are famous for exploring youth problems in Hong Kong, such as Gangs , Spacked Out , Gimme Gimme and City Without Baseball...
as Goldfish Seller - Jean-Michel Sourd as French teacher
Reception
China DailyChina Daily
The China Daily is an English language daily newspaper published in the People's Republic of China.- Overview :China Daily was established in June 1981 and has the widest print circulation of any English-language newspaper in the country...
placed the film on their list of the best ten Chinese films of 2010.
Awards and nominations
- 29th Hong Kong Film Awards29th Hong Kong Film AwardsCeremony for the 29th Hong Kong Film Awards took place on 18 April 2010 . Here are the nominees listed taken from the official website.Wang Po Chieh's original nomination for the Best New Performer was withdrawn after he was confirmed to be an actor in the 2008 Taiwan film Winds of September...
- Won: Best Screenplay (Alex Law)
- Won: Best Actor (Simon Yam)
- Nominated: Best Actress (Sandra Ng)
- Won: Best New Performer (Aarif Lee)
- Nominated: Best New Performer (Chung Shiu To)
- Won: Best Original Film Song (Lowell Lo, Alex Law and Aarif Lee)
- 60th Berlin International Film Festival60th Berlin International Film FestivalThe 60th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 11 to February 21, 2010, with Werner Herzog as President of the Jury. The opening film of the festival was Chinese director Wang Quan'an's romantic drama Apart Together, in competition, while the closing film is Japanese...
- Crystal Bear for the Best Film in the Children’s Jury "Generation Kplus"
- 83rd Academy Awards83rd Academy AwardsThe 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , honored the best films of 2010 and took place February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, Academy Awards ...
- Best Foreign Language FilmAcademy Award for Best Foreign Language FilmThe Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
(not nominated)
- Best Foreign Language Film