NYAFF 2024 Review: For Alice

As cliché as the “sad dad” story might be in 2024, one can’t deny that it holds dramatic impact. I still remember the heartbreaking finale of Million Dollar Baby that shifts into a completely different film before delivering an absolutely devastating gut punch to the audience. That one might take the cake for “saddest ending of all time,” but the core of the story is so engaging that you can’t help but get sucked in.

For Alice is not on quite the same level as that movie and it certainly doesn’t have as traumatic of an ending, but it features yet another depressed father figure looking to right the wrongs of his past with the younger generation. While there are some obvious twists you’ll see coming if you’ve ever watched a film like this before, the strong acting and neo-noir-infused atmosphere make this movie an emotional journey well worth trekking through.

For Alice
Director: Chow Kam Wing
Release Date: July 13, 2024 (NYAFF)
Country: Hong Kong

The general plot of For Alice is not the overall point of this film. In the great tradition of a Wong Kar-Wai movie, this is all about the atmosphere, vibes, and the personal connection between its two leads. Veteran Hong Kong actor Tai Bo plays Shuang, a man recently released from prison and struggling to make ends meet. Previously living with his brother, he finds an incredibly small apartment in Tsim Sha Tsui’s “Mirador Mansion” apartment complex and proceeds to do some people-watching. He oversees a young girl being berated by an older man who then throws her luggage into the middle of the high-rise courtyard. Shuang then offers a helping hand so that the girl can at least have somewhere safe to stay for the night.

Right off the bat, you understand that Shuang has some reason for his actions here. While they are gracious, they also aren’t completely selfless. It’s not revealed for quite some time in the film, but Shuang has a connection with this young girl, who affectionately refers to herself as Alice. Alice is played by newcomer Kuku So and she has had a tumultuous upbringing. Her father disappeared right around when she was born and her mother has had a string of ever-worsening boyfriends that have culminated in a man who is sexually abusing her. After standing up for herself, Alice is now out on the street and Shuang doesn’t want to see her come to harm.

So many different influences came to my mind while watching For Alice, the most prominent of which was the 2005 film Broken Flowers. While that film does hang its plot on the idea of its main character trying to reconnect with a potential child, the overall message is that the journey is more important than the destination. For Alice feels similar in that whatever the outcome of its plot is, you’re there to share in the joy that Shuang and Alice experience with one another.

Alice is initially apprehensive of Shuang, but his desire to protect her and offer some guidance endears him with her. Eventually, the two have dinner together, take hikes, and even stage a fake PTA meeting to satiate her teachers. Alice is a kind soul, but she is struggling and will do what is necessary to survive, including stealing. Shuang has a dark past, which is revealed as having spent more than a third of his life behind bars. He doesn’t want Alice to wind up like him, though there’s also a deeper meaning there.

All of this is rendered beautifully by director Chow Kam Wing’s careful eye. At times, For Alice gives off Blade Runner vibes, and while the film is not trying to paint a cyberpunk world, the warm glow of Hong Kong gives this film a futuristic look. It doesn’t hurt that most of the scenes play out in cramped interiors and somehow even more cramped exteriors, showcasing the bustling underground malls and tight architecture of Hong Kong high rises in all of their glory.

What truly carries the film, however, is the acting from both Tai Bo and Kuku So. So is very clearly the standout here and I hope she continues to flourish in her career, but Tai Bo particularly blew me away. I’ve seen him in bits roles as far back as Enter the Dragon, but he really excels as a leading man. Maybe I’m reading a bit too much into it, but there’s a sadness emanating from his acting that almost feels like he is trying to prove he isn’t just a stuntman. The plight of Shuang is certainly sadder than Bo’s, who at least had a flourishing career, but both men are trying to right a wrong that has long followed them.

Kuku So, meanwhile, has leading lady written all over her. She accurately captures the mischievousness of a teenager while portraying a strength that only hardship can shape. There’s a scene right at the beginning where she starts to break down in the middle of the rain and it tore my heart in two. She also has a great screen presence, soaking in the atmosphere and looking like she completely understands how to film her best side.

Where I start to draw some negatives is mainly with regard to originality. That’s such a tired complaint for really any film, but For Alice is a film you’ll have likely seen before. It’s pulled off with a style and flair that makes it engaging, but there isn’t really anything here that will truly shock you. To the right people, they will likely gel with this touching and personal story on a deeper level, but I did enjoy practically every second of it. There are some great sequences where dialogue fades away to allow the score to take over, but then a couple of local references are lost on me as a US-based citizen. I wish I could better understand them, but then every film doesn’t need to appeal to literally everyone.

Even so, anyone with a heart should be able to connect with the emotional core of For Alice. It’s just a solidly made film with a bittersweet story that should engage you on a human level. That it features an actor I’m overly familiar with pushing himself to new heights is a delight as an old-school Hong Kong fan, but it also speaks to a new generation of Hong Kong filmmakers who want to keep the industry alive by telling them that the old guard has their backs. We all make mistakes and grow old, but it’s never too late to set things right.