Senior same-sex love in Hong Kong: Ray Leung's quiet study of character and culture, TWILIGHT'S KISS

Having just seen a French film detailing senior lesbian love and the damages of the closet, here comes another that covers gay seniors in Hong Kong, both grandfather-age and both quite firmly in the closet so far as their respective families are concerned. 

Unlike the heavy melodrama that drives (and plagues) Two of Us, TWILIGHT'S KISS, quiet and concerned, gives over to character and the culture that has helped mold this in our two heroes, as well as in their families, friends and society at large.

Written and directed by Ray Yeung (at right), whose charming, slightly-dark rom-rom Front Cover, I enjoyed a few years back, this new film of his -- made prior to the seemingly endless protests now roiling Hong Kong -- is surprisingly immersive, given how quiet and small-scale it consistently proves to be.

Yeung's two leading actors -- Tai-Bo (below, right) and Ben Yuen (below, left) -- are triumphs of low-key detailing. Bit by bit, they lead us into character, life and the culture of Hong Kong, as each experiences it. Because Yeung and his cast are so full of specifics, all these details quickly pull us into the narrative, which only grows more specific and fascinating, the more complex and problematic it slowly becomes.

There are no real villains here -- not even society or the State itself. While it is obvious that things could be better in terms of acceptance for the GLBT population, the movie has a welcome lack of finger-pointing or -wagging. Instead our two guys make the best of what they have, even as they try to push  the boundaries, at least slightly. (Along the way we also get to see what Hong Kong's younger generation is doing for gay rights and how the semi-necessary closet is still holding back many in the older generation.)

The two men's families are perhaps more of a hindrance than a help, yet it is clear that they are all doing the best they can, given their circumstances and beliefs. Religion -- Buddhism vs Christianity vs agnosticism -- plays into things -- yet so kindly and fair is his perspective that the filmmaker never dips to easy satire nor simplistic views. 

Some viewers will wish for more explicit drama here, but TrustMovies is more than happy with the level to which Twilight's Kiss rises. The final sequence -- which for me, at least, seemed to indicate a willingness for exploration (and/or perhaps compromise) -- proves as quiet, subtle, thoughtful and lovely as all that has come before.

From Strand Releasing and presented with support from the R.G. Rifkind Foundation Endowment for Queer Cinema, in Cantonese with English subtitles, and running just 92 minutes, the movie opens virtually at New York City's Film Forum this Wednesday, February 9, and will very soon open elsewhere around the country. Click here for more information on viewing at Film Forum, and here for info on further nationwide playdates.