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Shootouts and car chases are interrupted only by brief bouts of middling melodrama in “The White Storm 2: Drug Lords,” an in-name-only sequel to the 2013 hit about cops involved in the war on drugs. Vigorously directed by prolific veteran Herman Yau (“Shock Wave”) and well served by an all-star cast headed by Andy Lau and Louis Koo, this Hong Kong action-thriller isn’t deep but is certainly not dull. Mainland audiences have gone wild for “Drug Lords,” with 1.8 million admissions and a $105 million gross in 7 days since its July 5 release, which suggests the potential for relatively strong returns in the U.S., U.K. and other territories as well. Hong Kong release is set for July 16.

In an extended 2004-set prologue, Tin (Lau) and Dizang are low-level hoods working for Tin’s uncle, Yu Nam (Kent Cheng), a triad boss with a strict “no selling drugs” policy. When Dizang breaks the rule,...

It has been more than two decades since Hong Kong has rejoined the People’s Republic of China, while maintaining its own political system, autonomy, currency and, generally speaking, way of life. The neighbouring Guangdong province has seen a huge economic developed since then, but another phenomenon is on the rise. There is a large number of people who commute on daily basis and therefore have double identity of sorts. That topic needs to be addressed also in cinema and the mainland Chinese first-time filmmaker Bai Xue does it in a stunning fashion and with a lot of style in her feature debut “The Crossing” (“Guo Chun Tian” in original).

The film premiered at the last year’s edition of Tiff to a warm critical reception and was shown on home turf at Pingyao International Film Festival, where it scooped a couple of awards before heading to its European premiere at Generation 14plus sidebar of Berlinale.

When it comes to romantic comedies and the like, there’s no doubting the dedication and determination of Hong Kong writer/director Patrick Kong, who regularly churns out one or two genre films per year, generally to an appreciative local audience. With “A Secret Between Us”, Kong does take a slightly different route compared to his tried and tested formula, as seen recently in “Love is the Only Answer”, “Natural Born Lovers” and other outings, aiming for tears and tragedy rather than his trademark cynical laughs. The film stars Tvb actress Angel Chiang (also in Kong’s recent “The Best Plan is No Plan”) and newcomer Edward Ma, who play former childhood friends and sweethearts Bobo and Ken. Despite her being married and his being engaged, they still feel a connection after meeting up by chance years later, and reminisce over their teenage first love relationship and the traumas they...

Director: Danny Pang. Review: Adam Wing. The last time the Pang Brothers scored a hit was in 2006 with fantasy horror yarn, Re-cycle. Their collaborations have fared better than their solo offerings, but with The Detective, Diary and Abnormal Beauty under his belt, Oxide is the more reliable of the two. Danny has made some real clunkers along the way, including snooze-fest Forest of Death and In Love with the Dead. There's no doubting the visual prowess of either brother, but when it comes to great storytelling, fan favourites like The Eye and Bangkok Dangerous are fast becoming distant memories. Psycho-thriller Fairy Tale Killer is written and directed by Danny Pang, in collaboration with Thai director of photography Decha Srimantra (The Eye, Chocolate). In Lau Ching Wan (Mad Detective), Fairy Tale Killer has found a strong lead actor, but Danny also casts Wang Bao Qiang (Blind Shaft), Elanne Kwong (The Child's...

Children's stories walk hand in hand with murder, right? Well they do in Danny Pang's world, and Fairy Tale Killer is the latest in a long line of atmospheric horror movies from the creator of The Eye. It's been a while since he delivered on his promise, but there are plenty of scares to be found in this gruesome crime thriller about a serial killer that finds inspiration in classic fables. Hardly groundbreaking, but the Pang Brothers are due a return to form. Lau Ching Wan (Life Without Principle) stars as the troubled cop on the case, while Wang Baoqiang (Mr. Tree) becomes the deranged killer responsible for the bloody deaths. Elanne Kwong (Love Lifting), Lam Suet, Elena Kong and Joey Meng are along for the ride, and you can catch it in the U.K. sooner than you think. Fairy Tale Killer arrives on U.K. shores October 7th 2013 courtesy of Terror Cotta.

Danny Pang, still best known as one half of the brotherly directorial duo responsible for the 2002 hit “The Eye”, takes another shot at recapturing his past form with “Fairy Tale Killer”, which as its title suggests follows the police hunt for a murderer who bases his methods around children’s fables. As with any Pang production, the film is a glossy affair with slick visuals, and this time has a couple of big headlining stars in Lau Ching Wan (“Life Without Principle”) and Wang Baoqiang (“Mr. Tree”), with support from the likes of Elanne Kwong (“Love Lifting”), Elena Kong (“A Simple Life”), Joey Meng (“All About Love”), and ultra prolific Hong Kong character actor Lam Suet (“The Great Magician”). The film opens with a strange, stammering young man with white face makeup called Ng (Wang Baoqiang) turning up at the police station of Inspector Wong (Lau Ching Wan) and confessing to a murder.

A Simple Life, also known as Sister Peach, is an upcoming Hong Kong drama film directed by Ann Hui and starring Andy Lau and Deanie Ip. Ip, in the titled role as Sister Peach, won the Best Actress Award in the 68th Venice International Film Festival.

Although it is often said that it is the first collaboration of Lau and Ip since 1988′s The Truth,their last collaboration was actually 1999′s Prince Charming. Production of the film officially began during Chinese New Year. It is filmed in Mei Foo Sun Chuen. Production was wrapped on 6 April 2011 after two months of filming. The film competed in the 68th Venice International Film Festival. It was also selected as the Hong Kong entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 84th Academy Awards,but it did not make the final shortlist.

Plot

Inspired by a true story, the film tells about a...