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‘Papa’ Review: A Moving Study in Grief and Redemption Based on a Shocking Hong Kong Crime Case
Sean Lau gives a terrific performance in 'Papa,' the delicately crafted new film by writer-director Philip Yung.
Featuring an outstanding lead performance by Sean Lau, “Papa” is played in a low key that produces high emotional impact — giving great depth and complexity to its protagonist’s unwavering determination to still love his son and understand what caused this tragedy. With expert tonal control over a non-linear screenplay that follows the aftermath of the crime and examines the love story that brought this family into being, writer-director Philip Yung ’s delicately crafted film should find a large and appreciative audience when it opens in Hong Kong on December 5, following its world premiere in competition at Tokyo. A big change of pace from the flashy-trashy glitz of his fact-based 2022 cops-‘n’-triads saga “Where the Wind Blows,” “Papa” continues Yung’s interest in real-life crime tales, which includes the Yung-produced “The Sparring Partner.” Here, he steers closer to the tone of his 2015 breakout hit “Port of Call,” about the murder of a teenage girl.
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