Sunday, June 15, 2014

Contagion - Matt Damon (2011) - Star Ferry, Hung Hom

Here's another film that has been on the back burner for a while but is worth looking at despite being fairly recent (filmed 2010, released 2011). It has a few locations that we haven't come across before, but here is an easy one for starters. It's the Star Ferry as we follow the ill guy heading home from work.


This doesn't appear to be our usual Star Ferry haunt though (i.e. TST or Central) and I am going to go out on a limb and take a guess, so feel free to bombard me with abuse for getting it wrong. I think this is the Hung Hom ferry pier, my reasoning is that the skyline opposite doesn't really match the view from any of the other piers (I looked at North Point, Kowloon City, TST - did I miss any?) and also you may or may not have noticed the circular windows next to the ferry guy. It looks as though Hung Hom is the only one that has these windows.

You are looking at history now (if I'm right) because the Star Ferry services from Hung Hom to Central/Wanchai ended in 2011 - probably not long after these scenes were filmed. Will they ever come back? I don't think so.

3 comments:

gweilo8888 said...

You're definitely right, it's Hung Hom ferry pier. Check out the Street View here:

https://www.google.com/maps/@22.301706,114.190567,3a,24.9y,171.49h,88.99t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1ssWrfp32cZZ-ExxOT9jNFtA!2e0

You can see both the logo on top of AIA Tower, and just right of it, what I think is the Harbour Grand's LED screen. (See http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harbour_Grand_Hong_Kong.jpg, but you're looking from a different perspective so the then-new Harbour Grand looks to be further right.)

Both are also clearly visible in the screen grab from the movie, too.

gweilo8888 said...

In fact, here's one better. A shot showing Hung Hom Ferry Pier, complete with ferry at the pier -- and you can see both AIA Tower and Harbour Grand Hong Kong clearly in the background:

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/23937404

Your shot was taken immediately on the other side of the pier, just a few hundred feet from this location.

And it's a crying shame to lose the Star Ferry service there. Is the pier used any more, or does it sit vacant?

Phil said...

nice find. yes, a very big shame to lose the service but i don't think it was making money. There is still a service to North Point courtesy of NWFF: http://www.nwff.com.hk/eng/fare_table/north_point-hung_hom/

but the Star Ferry it ain't...

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