The upcoming May is a busy month for the film market, with 12 films scheduled for release during the May Day holiday, covering topics such as inspirational biographies, financial crimes, road comedies, youth growth, and classic animations, to meet the viewing needs of different audiences.
Ma Li interprets the life story of "Wan Chai Pier"; "The Great Sandstorm" is full of high energy, watching Bai Ke's subversive transformation; Herman Yau once again joins hands with Andy Lau to teach the "leeks" in the capital market with "Gold Hunting Game"; the road comedy "The Vast Horizon is My Love", the title of which can make people hum; the team of "Life is Unfamiliar", the box office champion of last year's May Day, brings "A Good Start in Life"; adapted from the high-scoring French movie "The Belliers", a tear-jerking domestic youth movie "Unique"; and Hayao Miyazaki's classic "Princess Mononoke" landed on the mainland screen for the first time, exploring the symbiosis between man and nature... It is not easy to digest so many movies during the May Day holiday. However, there are not many new films in the post-May Day period. As long as the quality is good, there is still a good chance to attract audiences through a long screening throughout May.
Dumpling Queen
Release date: April 30
Director: Andrew Lau
Starring: Ma Li, Kara Hui, Zhu Yawen
Plot summary: In the 1970s, Qingdao girl Zang Jianhe (Ma Li) was forced to live in exile with her two daughters. In order to make a living, she decided to sell dumplings. From no one to a bustling business, the dumpling business grew bigger and bigger, and her life became wider and wider...
Highlights: "Wan Chai Pier" corporate promotional video? No, it's the heroine's real inspirational life!
Thunderbolt*
Release date: April 30
Director: Jack Schreier
Starring: Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, David Harbour, Wyatt Russell, Hannah John-Kamen
Plot summary: A group of characters who were once active as villains or anti-heroes (Winter Soldier, Second-generation Black Widow, Red Guardian, etc.) were recruited by the government to form the "Thunderbolt Team" to carry out a high-risk mission - to go deep into the nuclear restricted area of Eastern Europe and seize doomsday weapons that can rewrite human genes.
Highlights: The Avengers' "marginal characters" anti-heroes gather together, which is darker and more adult-oriented than traditional Marvel movies. The foreshadowing of the future layout of the MCU is waiting for you to join.
Princess Mononoke (4K restored version)
Release date: May 1
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Starring (voiceover): Yōji Matsuda, Yuriko Ishida (original Japanese version); Zhao Liying (Chinese dubbing)
Plot summary: The young boy Ashitaka comes to the forest to lift the curse, encounters the "ghost princess" San who was raised by the wolf god, and is involved in the war between humans and the gods of nature.
Highlights: Hayao Miyazaki's masterpiece hits the mainland big screen for the first time, with a 4K restored version with upgraded picture quality. Zhao Liying voices "Xiao Sang" in Chinese, playing the "most vital" heroine in Hayao Miyazaki's works.
"The Wind Kills"
Release date: May 1
Director: Zhang Qi
Starring: Bai Ke, Xin Baiqing, Lang Yueting
Plot summary: In 1995, one year before the implementation of the comprehensive gun ban policy, the gangster Beishan (Xin Baiqing) who hid a huge treasure escaped from prison, and 43 vicious gangsters gathered here from all directions. "Night Owl" Xia Ran (Bai Ke) and two other policemen faced a devastating start of 1 gun against 88 guns. How to break the situation with their lives hanging by a thread?
Highlights: A well-received film at the Beijing International Film Festival, this is a genre-defying film based on a real case. Bai Ke transforms into a tough policeman, subverting his comedic image and making another breakthrough in his acting skills.
The Vast Horizon is My Love
Release date: May 1
Director: Chen Xiaoliang
Starring: Zeng Yi (Phoenix Legend), Zhou Qi, Sun Yizhou, Liu Yan
Plot summary: Model driver Zhao Tianya (Zeng Yi) and rapper Yu Hong (Zhou Qi) who wants to become popular become "master and apprentice partners" by accident. Yu Hong mistakenly thinks Zhao Tianya is a reality show NPC arranged by MCN boss Wu Liji (Sun Yizhou), and accidentally gets on Lao Zhao's truck, thus embarking on a 5,000-kilometer "sheep delivery" journey from Inner Mongolia to Hunan.
Highlights: The debut film of Phoenix Legend, with its own BGM "The Most Dazzling National Style", a national IP comedy, a reliable creative team, good preview reputation, funny and healing.
A Good Start to Life
Release date: May 1
Director: Yi Xiaoxing
Starring: Chang Yuan, Deng Jiajia, Wang Yaoqing, etc.
Plot summary: An unexpected crisis public relations makes "Grilled Sausage Brother" Zhou Dajiang (played by Chang Yuan) and the top internet celebrity Xiao Haimo (played by Deng Jiajia) form a "prefabricated couple". Zhou Dajiang, who was forced to "take the blame" for the overbearing president Qin Tianlong (played by Wang Yaoqing), accidentally became the new favorite of live broadcast. He was busy dealing with the traffic rules and made a lot of jokes on the road to becoming a new internet celebrity.
Highlights: This new film by Yi Xiaoxing, director of last year’s May Day champion “Unfamiliar Life”, focuses on the internet celebrity economy and satirizes traffic culture.
Gold Hunting Game
Release date: May 1
Director: Herman Yau
Starring: Andy Lau, Ou Hao, Ni Ni, Huang Yi, Jiang Mengjie, Kent Cheng
Plot summary: Financial guru Zhang Tode (played by Andy Lau) is known as the "prophet" of the stock market. All investors who have been guided by him have become rich. Gao Han (played by Ou Hao), a top student in finance, accidentally becomes Zhang Tode's apprentice and witnesses the madness of the capital market. However, as Zhang Tode's old acquaintance Anna (played by Ni Ni) gets involved, behind the stock market's surge and plunge, there is a carefully designed capital scam.
Highlights: The golden combination of Andy Lau and Herman Yau collaborated again after "Shock Wave" to create a financial crime blockbuster that exposes the dark side of the stock market. As for the game of the capital market, we "leeks" should learn the business and enhance our self-cultivation.
"unique"
Release date: May 1
Director: Wang Mu
Starring: Zhang Jingyi, Chen Minghao, Jiang Qinqin, Xin Yunlai, Bai Ke, Zhang Yu, Ouyang Nana
Plot summary: 17-year-old Yu Yan (Zhang Jingyi) is the only member of a hearing-impaired family who can hear sounds. She grew up in the "Yu Ji Fish Shop" run by her ancestors. However, her love for music and her family's dependence on her are in sharp conflict. When an accident breaks the peace of the family, Yu Yan must make a choice between protecting her family and pursuing her musical dream.
Highlights: "The Hearing Girl" is adapted from a high-quality original novel. The star-studded cast shows that the script is quite appealing, but the level of localization remains to be tested.
Kowloon Walled City: The Siege
Release date: May 2 (re-release)
Director: Cheang Pou-soi
Starring: Louis Koo, Sammo Hung, Richie Jen, Raymond Lam
Plot summary: In the 1980s, the notorious "no man's land" of Kowloon Walled City was infested with gangs and was fraught with danger. A distressed young man accidentally entered the city while fleeing, but unexpectedly found brotherhood here. At the same time, the evil gang that had been coveting the walled city for a long time set off a series of fierce battles to seize the walled city, and a hot-blooded battle to defend the walled city broke out!
Highlights: This year's big winner of the Hong Kong Film Awards, those who missed it last year can make up for it now.
Ghost in the Shell
Release date: May 10
Director: Mamoru Oshii
Starring (dubbing): Tanaka Atsuko, Otsuka Akio, Yamadera Koichi, Oki Minio
Plot summary: In 2029, in a world of high technology and informatization, a special unit dedicated to combating high-tech crimes, Public Security Section 9, was established. The team leader, Motoko Kusanagi, is a female police officer with a "cyborg" body, who leads Section 9 in continuous operations.
Highlights: Classic cyberpunk IP that inspired countless masterpieces.
Lonely Rock (Part 2)
Release date: May 10
Director: Keiichiro Saito
Starring (voiceover): Yoshino Aoyama, Sayumi Suzushiro, Saku Mizuno, Ikumi Hasegawa
Plot summary: The first performance of the "Bond Band" ended successfully without any danger, and the long summer vacation of the four girls continued. After that, the student's grand event - the campus cultural festival came, and the four of them actively prepared to perform on stage. After getting to know his bandmates, Goto, who was once alone, saw a colorful scenery that he had never seen before.
Highlights: Delicate brushstrokes depict the girls’ musical dreams and growth process. The painting style is beautiful and the music is pleasant.
The Accountant Assassin
Release date: May 16
Director: Gavin O'Connor
Starring: Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick
Plot summary: When an old friend is murdered, leaving behind only a cryptic message: "Find the accountant." Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) begins to investigate the case and enlists the help of his amazing brother Braxton (Jon Bernthal).
Highlights: Ben Affleck subverts his image with explosive acting skills, a crime showdown between a group of highly intelligent special people, and a cast that returns to Gotham City.
"love letter"
Release date: May 20 (re-release)
Director: Shunji Iwai
Starring: Miho Nakayama, Etsushi Toyokawa
Plot summary: Hiroko Watanabe sent a letter to her deceased fiancé, but received a reply from a woman with the same name, Fujii Itsuki, revealing a secret love story of youth.
Highlights: Pure love classic, Douban Top 250, Japanese healing aesthetics, a 520 greeting in time of the occasion, and also a commemoration of Miho Nakayama.
Lilo and Stitch
Release date: May 23
Director: Dean Fleischer-Kemp
Starring: Maya Kealoha, Chris Sanders, Zach Galifianakis
Plot summary: Lilo, a lonely little Hawaiian girl, has always dreamed of having a pet dog. The dog she adopted, Stitch, is actually a dangerous creature from outer space. As they get along, they develop a deep relationship. But the aliens who are chasing Stitch discover him on Earth and kidnap Lilo. Stitch decides to fight hard to save his friend.
Highlights: A live-action interpretation of the classic animation, with a new visual presentation of the cute Stitch image, which is also cute in the three-dimensional world.
Children of Time
Release date: May 30
Director: Liu Kuo, Yu Ao
Plot summary: A fishing village girl named Qian Xiao came to the metropolis by boat. She was accidentally "selected" by the Wheel of Time and gained the ability to control time, becoming the "Child of Time". While making new friends and enjoying a wonderful life, she was also hunted down by a huge force because of the Wheel of Time. As she grew up, she gradually uncovered the secrets hidden in the metropolis.
Highlights: A new film by the director of “Painting Jianghu” and “Wind Whisperer”, a film that Chinese comic fans have been waiting for for many years.
Private Eye
Release date: May 31
Director: Li Zijun, Zhou Wenru
Starring: Louis Koo, Chrissie Chau, Liu Guanting, Raymond Wong
Plot summary: During a tracking operation, private detective Ouyang Weiye is accidentally involved in a horrific murder of a young woman. Subsequently, a bizarre car accident on a rainy night, an innocent woman forced to commit suicide for love, and a bride-to-be murdered before her wedding occur one after another, and a hunting game in the name of love debt begins.
Highlights: Large-scale crime scenes and thrilling suspenseful plots will trigger the audience's thinking about human nature and sin.
