The film that I have selected which is set in Hong Kong for the field trip is ‘Love Undercover’ (2002) by director Joe Ma. The film is about a young police trainee who works as an undercover to get close to a gangster’s son to detect whether he was doing illegal business, but finally falling in love with him with a happy end. (IMDb, 2022) My choice of the building site which is also a critical element in the film is the Henan building located in at 90 Jaffe Road,Wan Chai District. (Prime property, 2022) This building appeared in the last scene of the movie in the end where the two main characters finally get together, start dating and live their happy life ever after.
By comparison, Henan building’s construction ended in 1985 and it doesn’t seem that the building’s exterior has changed a lot compare what I have seen in the movie. The building still got its striking title at the entrance, only with more modern font and dark background to bring out it more. The body of the building is still the same with all reflective black lattice glass windows on the outside.
In contrast, when I explored the site virtually and took a close look at the Henan building in reality by myself, I found the building expresses quite different emotions. Henan building is an office building which has a strong business climate located at unique geographical area. The renovated building has a more modern architecture design with much stronger professional vibe compared to how it appears in the movie 20 years ago. The neighborhood includes the high-rise Henan building covers a large site and makes good connections with other urban commercial properties and subways nearby. The interior design looks quite fancy with marble floors and a flexible use of lights in the design.
In my opinion, there is a number of reasons why Henan building expresses different feelings and emotion inside the movie and in reality. First, Love Undercover is a 2000s romantic comedy (Wikipedia, 2022) with a relaxed main key that supposed to make its audience feel happy and laugh while watching it. That’s why the building looks more soft, cozy, gentle with a warm vibe in the movie. The movie isn’t a workplace themed movies with mind games and tricks, which would look rather sharp and cold instead. Henan building appeared in the last scene in the movie when Fong Lai Kuen and Au Hoi Man finally get together after Fong’s undercover has been revealed. Au rode a motorcycle to pick Fong after she finished her work and when she hold him tight at the back, I think it is a metaphor for that they have finally started their happy life ever after. Therefore, Henan buildings works as a pleasing and comely element in the lovely and peaceful background to set off the leading characters’ love and that’s why it is presented in the ways in the film.
Reference List:
IMDb. 2022. “San jaat si mooi.”Film Synopsis information, online resources, available at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0367104/
Prime property. 2022. “Henan Building in Wanchai – Office for Rent and Sale.” Business information, online resources, available at: https://www.primeproperty.com.hk/property/hong-kong-office/wanchai/5673/henan-building
Wikipedia. 2022. “Love Undercover.” Film information, online resources, available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Undercover
Student name: Zhiliang Chen
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I appreciate some of your observations about the building’s exterior and interior. Did you take the photos yourself? Perhaps you could have tried to find or take photos of the building with a similar angle as the scene you identified in the film, so that your comparative analysis could be more specific. Also, can you further clarify why Henan Building constitutes a significant space in the film, given that it appears only once in the film? Finally, do avoid using Wikipedia as a reference.