Shanghai Blues

In 1937, after the Second Sino-Japanese War breaks out, a soldier and a young woman have an awkward meet-cute in darkness under a bridge as they seek refuge during a bombing raid. Although they can’t see each other’s faces, they promise to meet again after the dust settles. Ten years later, the soldier, now a burgeoning songwriter and tuba player in a marching band, is back in town desperately searching for his would-be soulmate. As fate would have it, they unknowingly end up living in the same building. Through a series of mishaps, he mistakes her new ingénue roommate for his love interest, and love triangle hijinks ensue.

Consummate auteur Tsui Hark almost single-handedly reinvented Hong Kong cinema in the '80s and '90s with uber-kinetic genre opuses, amping up cinematic spectacle whether with special effects or sheer unbridled energy. This Hong Kong-styled homage to the screwball comedies of yesteryear features black belt-level slapstick and delightfully droll rom-com shenanigans. With striking mise-en-scène and inspired production design, Shanghai Blues is “…luscious, loving and a lot of fun…one of Tsui Hark’s most enjoyable works" - Richard James Havis, South China Morning Post.

The 4K restoration of Shanghai Blues was supervised from the original negative by Tsui Hark with L’Immagine Ritrovata and the soundtrack remixed by One Cool Sound.

"[I]t succeeds in conjuring up the exuberance and energy that the very best MGM musicals could offer." ~ Andrew Saroch, Far East Films

"Far superior to any Hollywood attempts at this genre in the last 20 years, this delicate, touching and often hilarious little film deserves to be known to a wider audience. Fresh in its cheerful attitude and exhilarating in its execution, Shanghai Blues is a shining example of the exciting skill of its director." ~ Chris Hyde, Box Office Prophets