Directed by Patrick Leung, this affecting saga from Hong Kong hops between time frames, tracking characters from childhood in the mid-1980s to adulthood in the 1990s and early 2000s. The story spirals towards a dramatic conclusion, with the last ten minutes delivering a proper tear-jerker, unabashedly sentimental like a classic melodrama.
The key incident occurs around halfway: in 1985, four working-class kids on a Hong Kong housing estate – Kin, Heem, Hoyi, and her kid brother – see a UFO one night. This experience bonds them forever, though each grows up to pursue unexpected goals. Kin (played by Chui Tien-you as an adult) chases wealth in the booming stock market after the 1997 handover. Heem (Wong You-nam) had leukaemia as a child and lives in the short term. Hoyi (Charlene Choi) transforms from a pudgy girl into a slim beauty and becomes an accountant engaged to a dullard named Austin.
Despite the UFO, this is not a sci-fi film but a realist drama where the evolving city of Hong Kong itself is a character. Secondary figures include a Maoist uncle, a superstitious grandfather, and a doomed girlfriend. Made in 2019 but only now receiving international release, the film feels fresh and relevant amid current stock-market volatility.
