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Hong Kong: Movies and TV Shows Part of the Places of a Lifetime series from Traveler magazine

Movies and television programs that capture the atmosphere of the city.

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Chungking Express (1994)
Typical of director Wong Kar-wai, this film involves two parallel, never-quite-connecting plotlines. In highly stylized scenes set in Kowloon and Central/Soho, Hong Kong is presented as moody and gritty.

God of Gamblers (1989)
This began the popular "God of Gambler" series and made Chow Yun-fat a box office star. A blend of slapstick comedy, sentimental tale, and action thriller, with coordinated acrobatic fighting scenes now a trademark of Hong Kong cinema.

Infernal Affairs (2002)
This tale of undercover cops kicked off a trilogy that was the inspiration for Martin Scorsese's The Departed.

Dumplings, Three Extremes (2004)
A gory plotline centers on the lengths to which some women will go to stay young and beautiful. The main backdrop is a typical Hong Kong residential estate, with its uniform towers housing endlessly varied lives.

In the Mood for Love (2000)
A film steeped in nostalgia for early post-war Hong Kong, from the fitted cheongsam dresses worn by the female lead, Maggie Cheung, to the crooning of Chow Hsuan and Nat King Cole in the background. Cheung and Tony Leung play neighbors who learn their spouses are cheating on them.

Hong Kong Multimedia

Know Before You Go: Hong Kong

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