Stanley Kwan: Ladies Man

 

June 11-14, 2026

Asia Society, NYC 

 

원령옥 Center Stage 阮玲玉 (1991)

 

Seven-film retrospective features the Hong Kong filmmaker in person for introductions and post-film discussions

Stanley Kwan is one of the most celebrated figures in Hong Kong cinema. He emerged as part of the “Second New Wave”, serving as an assistant director for the likes of Ann Hui and Patrick Tam before making his directorial debut with Women in 1985. Aptly titled, the film would kickstart a slew of acclaimed works featuring engaging, multi-dimensional female characters– a tendency Kwan has attributed to the dominant influence of his mother and sisters in his upbringing. One of the few Asian directors of his generation to openly identify as gay, Kwan’s conscious attention to gender roles and sexuality makes him a unique figure in a national cinema widely known for its machismo. 

 

This retrospective features the six narrative features Kwan made between 1985 and 1994’s Red Rose White Rose; plus Lan Yu (2001), the heart-rending queer adaptation that proved Kwan can portray male characters with just as much sensitivity and depth as women. Demonstrating a flair for highly controlled mise-en-scene; genre competence stretching from screwball to neo-noir to melodrama; and an ability to draw the best out of movie stars like Maggie Cheung, Anita Mui, and Joan Chen, Kwan ranks with classical auteurs of the highest order, with modernist sensibilities to spare.

 

 

#여인심 Women 女人心 (1985)

11 Jun 2026, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.

 

주윤발 주연. Stanley Kwan's debut feature, made after years spent as an assistant director for filmmakers like Ann Hui and Patrick Tam, stars Cora Miao, Chow Yun-Fat and Cherie Chung in a snappy, cosmopolitan tale of marital strife. Followed by a Q&A.

 

#지하정 Love Unto Waste 地下情 (1986)

12 Jun 2026, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.

 

양조위, 주윤발 주연. Stanley Kwan’s sordid tale of lust and murder begins as three friends become involved with Tony (a young Tony Leung Chiu-wai in one of his first film roles), the playboy son of a wealthy rice merchant. Followed by a Q&A.

 

#인지구 Rouge 胭脂扣 (1987)

13 Jun 2026, 12:30 - 2:30 p.m.

 

매염방, 장국영 주연. Cantopop superstars Anita Mui Yim-fong and Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing display their iconic androgynous magnetism as doomed lovers in this emblematic film of Hong Kong’s Second New Wave. Followed by a Q&A with Stanley Kwan.

 

#인재뉴약 Full Moon in New York 人在紐約 (1989)

13 Jun 2026, 3:30 - 5:30 p.m.

 

실비아 창, 장만옥 주연. Stanley Kwan's only film shot in the USA stars Maggie Cheung, Sylvia Chang and Siqin Gaow as three Chinese women in New York. Followed by a Q&A with Stanley Kwan.

 

#원령옥 Center Stage 阮玲玉 (1991)

13 Jun 2026, 6:30 - 9:30 p.m.

 

장만옥 주연. International superstar Maggie Cheung (In the Mood for Love) embodies tragic screen siren Ruan Lingyu, known as the "Greta Garbo of China," in this unconventional biopic. Followed by a Q&A with Stanley Kwan.

 

#Red Rose White Rose 紅玫瑰白玫瑰 (1994)

14 Jun 2026, 12:30 - 2:30 p.m.

 

조안 첸 출연. Stanley Kwan's sumptuous Eileen Chang adaptation stars Joan Chen, Veronica Yip, and Winston Chao in a devastating love triangle set in pre-WWII Shanghai. Followed by a Q&A.

 

#Lan Yu 藍宇 (2001)

14 Jun 2026, 4:30 - 6:30 p.m. 

 

A 25th anniversary screening of Stanley Kwan's landmark gay melodrama. Followed by a Q&A.

https://asiasociety.org/new-york/stanley-kwan-ladies-man