Review: The Last Dance

Wong (left) and Hui (right) in the smash hit The Last Dance

The Last Dance is a film that has been a smash hit in the Hong Kong box office making a record HK$122 million in a month since its release. It released last week in Vancouver and we saw it at Cineplex Cinemas Marine Gateway this afternoon.

Not only does the film have a stellar cast, but also a great script written and directed by Anselm Chan Mou-yin which he wrote during the pandemic.

The story is set in Hung Hom post pandemic, when a wedding planner, named Dominic, played by Dayo Wong Tse-wah, is struggling financially and starts working with a traditional Taoist priest, Master Man, played by Michael Hui Koon-man.

Wai (right) plays a paramedic in the film

The priest's role is to perform the traditional funeral ritual, "Break Hell's Gate" to help the dead go to the afterlife.

At first Dominic thinks it's not too hard to parlay his skills in organising weddings to funerals, but realises he needs to put more care into dealing with both the living and the dead.

Meanwhile Master Man's family dynamics are soon revealed, as his son is his apprentice, while his daughter Yuet is a paramedic; she thinks her brother is her father's favourite, as traditionally women are not allowed to perform Taoist rites because they menstruate. These tensions come to a head, and many women in particular can relate to sexist attitudes, older generation versus the younger one, and how fathers treat their children in The Last Dance.

As this film is about the death industry, there are many death scenes, and discussions about last wishes, how bodies are prepared for funerals, and so on. Death is an unusual topic for Chinese people to talk about openly, but in general society is becoming more accepting of discussing something we all face eventually.

Yuet is concerned about a shopkeeper's health

There is a scene of a woman mourning her same-sex lover, while a mother has an unusual request of how to prepare her young son's body.

Chan apparently did a lot of research for this film, interviewing many people who work in the deathcare industry, and the story was inspired by seeing a lot of death around him during the pandemic. The film is not hilarious, but has a few humorous lines to lighten the mood. 

As Dominic, Wong is empathetic; if the character was portrayed as a younger man, he may not be credible enough to stand up to Master Man. Michelle Wai as Yuet is strong-willed, yet traditional in terms of her loyalty to her family, and so she is disappointed when her brother does whatever he can to help his son have a better life.

Hopefully The Last Dance will prompt more discussions about death, and encourage aging parents to discuss their last wishes to their children to ensure all that needs to be said to loved ones while they are alive, not dead.