It had the makings of a sequel — Tiananmen Square Massacre II — written all over it. What began as Operation Dawn, a citywide strike intended to shut down Hong Kong’s traffic grid, ended in days of dissent among students of Hong Kong Polytechnic University that culminated in police brutality. The goal was to peacefully protest the government’s controversial plan to allow extraditions to mainland China. Make no mistake, this was an organized protest: resisters arrived armed with pink gas masks and carrying umbrellas in the event a water cannon was aimed in their direction. Through a bullhorn they announced themselves to the police as a group of civil protesters who, given the choice, would not be risking their lives. For the students, it was one failed escape attempt after another, with the cops more interested in making arrests than they were in enabling a peaceful exodus. (Officers were initially overheard joking that they were headed to Poly U to kill cockroaches.) The film is a hard sell, particularly in light of last year’s violent unrest, followed by the Capitol insurrection that kicked off 2021. Forgive me for reducing upheaval to a generic pigeonhole, but the architectural facade that gives the film it’s title adds an air of Alcatraz to what could easily be mistaken for a compelling prison picture. (I half expected to hear a copper cry, “Come out with your hands up, Rocky, or it’s curtains for you!”) Like every celluloid prison break worth the money, protesters were divided into two groups: those willing to take the risk and those who deem the risk too great. The protest dragged on for over a week, with police stationed at the harbor on the lookout for students making their escape through the sewer system. This is the antithesis of a talking head documentary: only one participant is interviewed on camera, a protester insisting that he’s willing to die for the cause, but would prefer to do so with cameras rolling so his sacrifice wouldn’t be in vain — or worse, go unnoticed by the media. The interview ends with the camera pulling back to reveal his bow and arrow at the ready. In the eyes of many, the words “media” and “fake news” have become synonymous. The direction is attributed to Hong Kong Documentary Filmmakers, and credit must be paid to the kamikaze camera people who risked life and limb by putting themselves in the middle of this conflict to illuminate the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Screens in conjunction with the San Diego Asian Film Festival: November 2 at 8:10 pm and November 4 at 7:55 pm @ UltraStar Mission Valley. (2020) — Scott Marks
This movie is not currently in theaters.