Cinematheque Passion brings Macau audience a New Year’s Eve Double Bill of Charlie Chaplin’s classic “City Lights” and the hotly-anticipated “Years of Macau” featuring nine local directors’ stories on December 28, 29 and 31. Take an over-100-years cinematic adventure with and feel the magic cinema brings to a city! In Cantonese and English with Chinese and English subtitles.
Lights are shed on images through projection, what follows is changes in urban cultural life. In 1895, when the first ever film The Arrival of a Train came out, the audience thought a real train was coming directly at them. They were scared and screamed, but shortly afterwards realized the magic of cinema. When cinema appears in a city, magical or fantastical things could happen. In the early years, cinema meant silent films. After a few decades, sound took the main stage. The film City Lights appeared at this cinematic crossroads, as Charlie Chaplin closed off the silent film era with this classic. The film also saw Chaplin’s career peak. He poked fun at the world through the love story of a poor man and a blind woman. The idea of true love returns after sacrifice warms up the heart of the indifferent city.
In 1910, Macau had its first cinema, Teatro Vitoria. Macao people got to enjoy the magic of cinema; however, local filmmaking started its journey in the last decade. Years of Macau gathers works by nine local filmmakers on the important 20th anniversary of the Macau handover. The filmmakers chose a year during these two decades as the background for their stories, including the 10th anniversary of the handover, the 2012 phenomenon, and Typhoon Hato in 2017. They show how the city’s citizens got through all the difficulties in this little town, as well as their moving life experiences.
From City Lights (1931) to Years of Macau (2019) there is a century-long interval. Filmmaking happens in different corners of the world endlessly. No matter how much difficulties and changes, life experiences remain the key theme of cinema. Towards the end of 2019, many miraculous things will happen. Let’s sit in the cinema, enjoy the films and wait for the next miracle.
When: Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday, December 28, 29 and 31, 2019
Where: Cinematheque Passion, 13 Travessa da Paixão, Macau
How much: MOP $60 per person
For more information, visit their website
