52 Films by Women Vol 7. 5. MAMA'S AFFAIR (Director: Kearan Pang)
Mention Hong Kong cinema to many cinemagoers and they might think of action films, particularly the work of John Woo, Johnny To and, in a lighter vein, Stephen Chow, or else the arthouse romances directed by Wong Kar-Wai. They won’t necessarily cite a melodrama featuring two members of the Cantopop boy band, ‘Mirror’. The latter is Mama’s Affair , written and directed by Kearan Pang ( 29 + 1 ) which tells the story of a woman, Mei-Fung (Teresa Mo) undergoing a shameful divorce who takes on as a protégé, Fong Ching (Keung To) a charming waiter from a local café, much to the annoyance of her seventeen year-old son, Hin (Jer Lau). This is a generic but enjoyable and unexpectedly moving drama about following your talent and second chances. For Fong Ching, it is about having a mother for the first time in years, someone who he trusts and honours. Hin, by contrast, hides his true self from his mother, ostensibly planning to study at Cambridge University, England to be an architect. He ...