Film Review: Twilight’s Kiss

Twilight’s Kiss is a drama from Hong Kong filmmaker, Ray Yeung. It follows Pak (Tai-Bo) and Hoi (Ben Yuen), two elderly working class men who also happen to be closeted gay men. Pak is still married with his wife of 40 years, Ching (Patra Au), and their children have been grown and moved out, a daughter is even getting married soon, though Ching doesn’t necessarily approve. Hoi is a a divorced retiree, and he lives with his devout Christian son, Wan (Lo Chun Yip), and his wife and granddaughter. One day, Pak and Hoi’s paths collide, and they begin to form a relationship.

The film takes a very relaxed and meditative approach to exploring its characters. It avoid a lot of the overly dramatic tropes you would normally find in stories that might be similar. It has a quiet and gentle nature that is emphasized by its intimate and observing cinematography from Ming-Kai Leung, and the score from Veronica Lee, which consists mainly of piano and some strings. Yeung tackles the subject matter with great sensitivity and empathy, showcasing some of the many struggles gay men face, particular older gay men, and it does so without veering into exploitative or melodramatic territory.

Yeung paints his characters with a lot of nuance, and I like the way he explores the communal aspects of the gay community in Hong Kong. We get a couple scenes where a group of older gay men come together to discuss the potential in opening a nursing home exclusively for gay men like themselves, where they don’t have to worry about the emotional baggage of other people’s judgement that they have to deal with on a day-to-day basis. Many of those folks are out, which contrasts with the experience of our two leads, who have not gotten the opportunity to really open themselves up to their families.

As a romance, it’s very engaging, and also quite unique. Much like the French film, Two Of Us, this film explores same sex love between two people who are old, and that’s a rare thing to see from any film industry. Yeung doesn’t shy away from showing Pak and Hoi being together in bed, highlighting all the imperfections that come with age. I can’t say I’ve seen gay intimacy quite like it before, especially not in the mainstream Hollywood space.

The performances from Tai-Bo and Ben Yuen are both incredible. Both are understated, yet they each bring a distinctive persona that requires so much emotion to be expressed with minor looks, glances, and movements. Both of them have been acting for quite a while, Tai-Bo in particular has been going strong since the late 70s, and their experience definitely works to their advantage. Everyone else featured in the film is good as well, but they aren’t given the kind of challenge that these two are in terms of relaying this unspoken sense of love and longing without going over-the-top. It’s truly phenomenal work.

Twilight’s Kiss is the kind of film that feels like you randomly show up to observe the lives of some characters for a short period of time and leave. It doesn’t provide closure to Pak and Hoi’s story, which I can see being frustrating for some, especially considering its already patient and quiet approach to the story. However, I found it to be quite affecting and engaging, not in spite of its pacing and lack of closure, but because of it. The emotions ring true, and every little moment is filled with a profound sense of humanity and melancholy. In less delicate hands, this could have been nothing more than a basic and heavy handed message movie, but Ray Yeung’s skill and compassion shines through.

Twilight’s Kiss expands its virtual cinema run and opens in VOD platforms on February 19th.