Johnnie To
Encyclopedia
Johnnie To Kei-Fung, born 22 April 1955, is a Hong Kong
film director
and producer
. Popular in his native Hong Kong
, To has also found acclaim overseas. Intensely prolific, To has made films in a variety of genres, though in the West he is best known for his action
and crime
movies, which have earned him critical respect and a cult following
.
His films, often made in collaboration with the same group of actors, screenwriters and cinematographers, frequently explore themes of friendship
, fate
and the changing face of Hong Kong society. Sometimes described as "multifaceted and chameleonic" due to his ability to switch tones and genres between movies, To is nonetheless seen as having a consistent style
, which involves mixing subdued realism and social observation with highly stylized visual and acting elements.
To heads the Hong Kong-based production company Milkyway Image with his frequent co-director Wai Ka-Fai
.
and director on TV shows starting in 1973. In 1978, he shot his first theatrical feature, but continued working in television. In 1988,
An assistant TV director in the Shaw Studios era, To became famous when his 1989 film
All About Ah-Long, starring Chow Yun-fat
, became one of the biggest box office hits in that year. In 1988, he co-directed The Big Heat
, his first action movie. The film was produced by Tsui Hark
. The end of the 1980s also saw some of To's biggest commercial successes, the vast majority of which were comedies. His 1988 film The Eighth Happiness
was that year's highest grossing movie.
In 1996, To and frequent collaborator Wai Ka-Fai
formed Milkyway Image, a production house that specializes in cost-efficient independent film
s made by To and Wai, as well their frequent collaborators from Law Wing-Cheong
to scriptwriter Yau Nai-Hoi
.
In April 2011, it was announced that he would be a member of the jury for the main competition at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival
.
for the website of Tisch Film Review, Ignatiy Vishnevetsky writes: "To has directed some of the best movies of the last two decades; he is more astounding than almost any other director working today. His cinema is exciting (but never tiring), intelligent (but never distanced), and, above all, emotional." Reviewing To's Exiled
for the Chicago Reader in 2007, critic Fred Camper writes: "...like many great filmmakers — Howard Hawks
, John Ford
, Raoul Walsh
— Hong Kong-based To makes movies that are both commercially viable and animated by a powerful artistic vision." Defining To's vision, Camper adds that "To’s worldview can take precedence over the narrative
" and praises the director for his "subtle visual poetry."
To has also earned the admiration of foreign filmmakers, including Quentin Tarantino
, who called To's 2005 film Election
"the best film of the year".
Hong Kong film critic Perry Lam of Muse
Magazine sees To as 'a gifted storyteller and dramatist who has made up his mind to be a stylist and visual poet,' but also observes that 'his insistence on elegance and control limits his work. He perfects his images until you begin to feel like a clumsy intruder for even looking at them. Rarely do you get beneath the decorous surface and feel a character's lifeblood.'
was screened Out-of-Competition in 2004
; Exiled
was shown in Competition at the festival in 2006
; Mad Detective
was shown in Competition in 2007
.
Five of To's films have been featured at the Cannes Film Festival
: Breaking News premiered as an Out-of-Competition midnight screening in 2004
; Election
was shown in Competition in 2005
; its sequel, Election 2
(aka Triad Election), was screened in Out-of-Competition midnight screenings in 2006
, and Triangle was screened in Out-of-Competition midnight screenings in 2007
; Vengeance
competed for the prestigious Palme D'Or
in 2009
. At the Berlin International Film Festival
, Sparrow was shown in Competition in 2008.
In North America, To's films have been consistently screened at the Toronto International Film Festival
. The Mission
, Fulltime Killer, PTU
, Breaking News, Throw Down and Mad Detective all screened between 1999 and 2007. In 2006, Election, Election 2, and Exiled were screened.
In 2005, To received the "Time Machine Career Achievement Award" at the Festival de Cine de Sitges
, Europe's most prestigious film festival specializing in genre films. To was also honoured as a "Filmmaker in Focus" of 2007 International Film Festival Rotterdam
. In 2009, while Vengeance competed at Cannes, To was made an officer of the French Order of Arts and Letters
by the French Minister of Culture
in recognition for his films.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
and producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
. Popular in his native Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, To has also found acclaim overseas. Intensely prolific, To has made films in a variety of genres, though in the West he is best known for his action
Hong Kong action cinema
Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. It combines elements from the action film, as codified by Hollywood, with Chinese storytelling and aesthetic traditions, to create a culturally distinctive form that nevertheless has a wide transcultural...
and crime
Crime film
Crime films are films which focus on the lives of criminals. The stylistic approach to a crime film varies from realistic portrayals of real-life criminal figures, to the far-fetched evil doings of imaginary arch-villains. Criminal acts are almost always glorified in these movies.- Plays and films...
movies, which have earned him critical respect and a cult following
Cult film
A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a highly devoted but specific group of fans. Often, cult movies have failed to achieve fame outside the small fanbases; however, there have been exceptions that have managed to gain fame among mainstream audiences...
.
His films, often made in collaboration with the same group of actors, screenwriters and cinematographers, frequently explore themes of friendship
Friendship
Friendship is a form of interpersonal relationship generally considered to be closer than association, although there is a range of degrees of intimacy in both friendships and associations. Friendship and association are often thought of as spanning across the same continuum...
, fate
Destiny
Destiny or fate refers to a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual...
and the changing face of Hong Kong society. Sometimes described as "multifaceted and chameleonic" due to his ability to switch tones and genres between movies, To is nonetheless seen as having a consistent style
Auteur theory
In film criticism, auteur theory holds that a director's film reflects the director's personal creative vision, as if they were the primary "auteur"...
, which involves mixing subdued realism and social observation with highly stylized visual and acting elements.
To heads the Hong Kong-based production company Milkyway Image with his frequent co-director Wai Ka-Fai
Wai Ka-Fai
Wai Ka-Fai is a Hong Kong writer, filmmaker, producer and former TV director and producer.Wai is best known for his frequent collaborations with Johnnie To, another former TV turned film director and producer. In 1996, they formed Milkyway Image, which is now one of the most successful independent...
.
Career
Johnnie To began his career at age 17 as a messenger for the Hong Kong television studio TVB. From there To moved up the ladder, working as an executive producerExecutive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
and director on TV shows starting in 1973. In 1978, he shot his first theatrical feature, but continued working in television. In 1988,
An assistant TV director in the Shaw Studios era, To became famous when his 1989 film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
All About Ah-Long, starring Chow Yun-fat
Chow Yun-Fat
Chow Yun-fat, SBS is an actor from Hong Kong. He is best known in Asia for his collaboration with filmmaker John Woo in heroic bloodshed genre films A Better Tomorrow, The Killer, and Hard Boiled; and to the West for his role as Li Mu-bai in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon...
, became one of the biggest box office hits in that year. In 1988, he co-directed The Big Heat
The Big Heat (1988 film)
The Big Heat is a 1988 Hong Kong film directed by Johnnie To, Andrew Kam Yeung Wah and Tsui Hark.-Cast and roles:* Waise Lee - Chief Inspector Waipong Wong* Joey Wong - Ada* Matthew Wong - Inspector Kwok-Keung Lun* Philip Kwok - Detective Ah Kam...
, his first action movie. The film was produced by Tsui Hark
Tsui Hark
Tsui Hark , born Tsui Man-kong, is a Hong Kong New Wave film director and producer. He is viewed as a major figure in the Golden Age of Hong Kong cinema .-Early life:...
. The end of the 1980s also saw some of To's biggest commercial successes, the vast majority of which were comedies. His 1988 film The Eighth Happiness
The Eighth Happiness
The Eighth Happiness is a 1988 Hong Kong film directed by Johnnie To.-Cast:* Chow Yun-fat - 'Handsome' Long* Raymond Wong - Mr. Fong* Jacky Cheung - San* Carol Cheng - Do-Do* Fennie Yuen - Ying-Ying* Cherie Chung - Beautiful...
was that year's highest grossing movie.
In 1996, To and frequent collaborator Wai Ka-Fai
Wai Ka-Fai
Wai Ka-Fai is a Hong Kong writer, filmmaker, producer and former TV director and producer.Wai is best known for his frequent collaborations with Johnnie To, another former TV turned film director and producer. In 1996, they formed Milkyway Image, which is now one of the most successful independent...
formed Milkyway Image, a production house that specializes in cost-efficient independent film
Independent film
An independent film, or indie film, is a professional film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly or completely outside of the major film studio system. In addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies, independent films are also produced...
s made by To and Wai, as well their frequent collaborators from Law Wing-Cheong
Law Wing-Cheong
Law Wing-Cheong is a Hong Kong film editor, an assistant director, film director and actor. He is best known for collaborating as an associate director for films made by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai of Milkyway Image.-Biography:...
to scriptwriter Yau Nai-Hoi
Yau Nai-Hoi
Yau Nai-Hoi is a Hong Kong filmmaker and screenwriter. He has been known as a popular writer for films directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai of Milkyway Image. He often collaborates with fellow Milkyway Image writers Wai Ka-Fai, Szeto Kam-Yuen, Au Kin-Yee and Yip Tin-Shing...
.
In April 2011, it was announced that he would be a member of the jury for the main competition at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival
2011 Cannes Film Festival
The 64th annual Cannes Film Festival was held from May 11 to May 22, 2011. American actor Robert De Niro served as the president of the jury for the main competition and French filmmaker Michel Gondry headed the jury for the short film competition...
.
Critical reputation
A genre filmmaker who produces work for a mainstream audience and is awesome, To has developed a very strong reputation in English-language film criticism. In his review of To's 2008 film SparrowSparrow
The sparrows are a family of small passerine birds, Passeridae. They are also known as true sparrows, or Old World sparrows, names also used for a genus of the family, Passer...
for the website of Tisch Film Review, Ignatiy Vishnevetsky writes: "To has directed some of the best movies of the last two decades; he is more astounding than almost any other director working today. His cinema is exciting (but never tiring), intelligent (but never distanced), and, above all, emotional." Reviewing To's Exiled
Exiled
Exiled is a 2006 Hong Kong action crime drama film produced and directed by Johnnie To, and starring Anthony Wong, Roy Cheung, Francis Ng, and Simon Yam. The action takes place in contemporary Macau.-Plot:...
for the Chicago Reader in 2007, critic Fred Camper writes: "...like many great filmmakers — Howard Hawks
Howard Hawks
Howard Winchester Hawks was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era...
, John Ford
John Ford
John Ford was an American film director. He was famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath...
, Raoul Walsh
Raoul Walsh
Raoul Walsh was an American film director, actor, founding member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the brother of silent screen actor George Walsh...
— Hong Kong-based To makes movies that are both commercially viable and animated by a powerful artistic vision." Defining To's vision, Camper adds that "To’s worldview can take precedence over the narrative
Narrative
A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"...
" and praises the director for his "subtle visual poetry."
To has also earned the admiration of foreign filmmakers, including Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
, who called To's 2005 film Election
Election (2005 film)
Election |society of Triads]]), is a 2005 Hong Kong crime film directed by Johnnie To. Featuring a large ensemble cast, the film stars Simon Yam and Tony Leung Ka-Fai as two gang leaders engaged in a power struggle to become the new leader of the Hong Kong Triad society.The film premiered as an...
"the best film of the year".
Hong Kong film critic Perry Lam of Muse
Muse (Hong Kong Magazine)
Muse is a bilingual Hong Kong-based multimedia publisher specializing in content related to Hong Kong's art and culture scene.. Until December 2010, Muse published an award-winning monthly arts and culture magazine...
Magazine sees To as 'a gifted storyteller and dramatist who has made up his mind to be a stylist and visual poet,' but also observes that 'his insistence on elegance and control limits his work. He perfects his images until you begin to feel like a clumsy intruder for even looking at them. Rarely do you get beneath the decorous surface and feel a character's lifeblood.'
Festivals and awards
Commercially successful in his native Hong Kong, To's films have regularly appeared at international festivals, most notably in Europe and North America. At the Venice International Film Festival, Throw DownThrow Down
Throw Down is a 2004 Hong Kong film directed by Johnnie To. Director To dedicated the film, one of his most personal films to date, to the late Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa. The film stars Louis Koo, Aaron Kwok, Cherrie Ying and Tony Leung Ka-Fai...
was screened Out-of-Competition in 2004
61st Venice International Film Festival
The 61st Venice International Film Festival was held on September 1 - 11th, 2004.-Jury:* John Boorman * Wolfgang Becker * Mimmo Calopresti * Scarlett Johansson * Spike Lee * Dusan Makavejev...
; Exiled
Exiled
Exiled is a 2006 Hong Kong action crime drama film produced and directed by Johnnie To, and starring Anthony Wong, Roy Cheung, Francis Ng, and Simon Yam. The action takes place in contemporary Macau.-Plot:...
was shown in Competition at the festival in 2006
63rd Venice International Film Festival
The 63rd Venice International Film Festival, held in Venice, Italy, was opened on 30 August 2006 with Brian De Palma's The Black Dahlia and was closed on 9 September 2006...
; Mad Detective
Mad Detective
Mad Detective is a 2007 Hong Kong psychological crime thriller film produced and directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai. The film centers on a schizophrenic, former police inspector , who decides to come out of retirement to help a rookie cop solve a complex murder case, involving a missing...
was shown in Competition in 2007
64th Venice International Film Festival
The 64th Venice International Film Festival, held in Venice, Italy, opened on August 29, 2007, with Joe Wright's Atonement and closed September 8, 2007. Host of the event was Italian soubrette Ambra Angiolini. The Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to American director Tim...
.
Five of To's films have been featured at the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
: Breaking News premiered as an Out-of-Competition midnight screening in 2004
2004 Cannes Film Festival
The 2004 Cannes Film Festival started on May 12 and ran until May 23. The Palme d'Or went to the American film Fahrenheit 9/11 by Michael Moore.-Jury:* Quentin Tarantino, President * Emmanuelle Béart * Edwidge Danticat * Tilda Swinton...
; Election
Election (2005 film)
Election |society of Triads]]), is a 2005 Hong Kong crime film directed by Johnnie To. Featuring a large ensemble cast, the film stars Simon Yam and Tony Leung Ka-Fai as two gang leaders engaged in a power struggle to become the new leader of the Hong Kong Triad society.The film premiered as an...
was shown in Competition in 2005
2005 Cannes Film Festival
The 2005 Cannes Film Festival started on May 11 and ran until May 22. Twenty movies from 13 countries were selected to compete. The awards were announced on May 21...
; its sequel, Election 2
Election 2
Election 2 |Black Society]]: Value Peace Most), also known as Triad Election in the United States, is a 2006 Hong Kong crime film directed by Johnnie To with a large ensemble cast that includes Louis Koo, Simon Yam and Nick Cheung...
(aka Triad Election), was screened in Out-of-Competition midnight screenings in 2006
2006 Cannes Film Festival
The 2006 Cannes Film Festival ran from May 17, 2006 to May 28, 2006. Twenty films from eleven countries were in competition for the Palme d'Or. The President of the Official Jury was Wong Kar-wai, the first Chinese director to preside over the jury....
, and Triangle was screened in Out-of-Competition midnight screenings in 2007
2007 Cannes Film Festival
The 2007 Cannes Film Festival, the sixtieth, ran from 16 to 27 May 2007. Wong Kar-wai's My Blueberry Nights opened the festival, and Denys Arcand's The Age of Ignorance closed...
; Vengeance
Vengeance (2009 film)
Vengeance is a 2009 neo-noir crime film directed by Johnnie To from a screenplay written by Wai Ka-Fai. A co-production between Hong Kong and France, the film stars Johnny Hallyday, Anthony Wong, Lam Ka-Tung, Lam Suet, Simon Yam and Sylvie Testud. The film was produced by Milkyway Image, and...
competed for the prestigious Palme D'Or
Palme d'Or
The Palme d'Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition. It was introduced in 1955 by the organising committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize was the Grand Prix du Festival International du...
in 2009
2009 Cannes Film Festival
The 62nd annual Cannes Film Festival was held from May 13 to May 24, 2009. French actress Isabelle Huppert was the President of the Jury. It was announced on March 19, 2009, that Pixar's film Up would open the festival...
. At the Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
, Sparrow was shown in Competition in 2008.
In North America, To's films have been consistently screened at the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
. The Mission
The Mission (1999 film)
The Mission is a 1999 Hong Kong action film produced and directed Johnnie To, and starring Anthony Wong, Francis Ng, Jackie Lui, Lam Suet, and Simon Yam.-Plot:...
, Fulltime Killer, PTU
PTU (film)
PTU , is a 2003 Hong Kong crime thriller produced and directed by Johnnie To, starring Simon Yam, Maggie Siu, Lam Suet and Ruby Wong.-Synopsis:...
, Breaking News, Throw Down and Mad Detective all screened between 1999 and 2007. In 2006, Election, Election 2, and Exiled were screened.
In 2005, To received the "Time Machine Career Achievement Award" at the Festival de Cine de Sitges
Festival de Cine de Sitges
The Sitges Film Festival is a Spanish film festival that is one of the most recognizable ones held in Europe, considered the world's foremost international festival specializing in fantasy and horror movies...
, Europe's most prestigious film festival specializing in genre films. To was also honoured as a "Filmmaker in Focus" of 2007 International Film Festival Rotterdam
International Film Festival Rotterdam
The International Film Festival Rotterdam is an annual film festival held in various cinemas in Rotterdam, Netherlands held at the end of January. It is approximately comparable in size to other major European festivals such as Cannes, Venice, Berlin, and Locarno...
. In 2009, while Vengeance competed at Cannes, To was made an officer of the French Order of Arts and Letters
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
The Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is an Order of France, established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture, and confirmed as part of the Ordre national du Mérite by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963...
by the French Minister of Culture
Minister of Culture (France)
The Minister of Culture is, in the Government of France, the cabinet member in charge of national museums and monuments; promoting and protecting the arts in France and abroad; and managing the national archives and regional "maisons de culture"...
in recognition for his films.