Thursday, July 16, 2015

Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story - Jason Scott Lee (1993) - Shaw Brothers Movietown, Sai Kung

Okay, this one is my last one until I get some more identified after posting them on my Budding Sleuths page. This one shops a brief glimpse of the (now completely defunct) Movietown back lot.
Even though the studios had essentially stopped making films in the mid-80's when TVB became the main focus for Sir Run Run, the back-lot was still available for lease to whoever needed it - for example Jackie Chan built a massive period set here in 1988 for use in Miracles. Anyway, the Dragon crew also used the place for a very brief scene showing the filming off a kung fu film.

Shaws fans (at least genuinely geeky ones) will immediately recognise the giant wooden pai-lau (archway) that occupies centre screen. It has been a regular landmark in many a Shaw-produced movie.


This shows to me that some of the back lot was still intact even after the nearby University of Science and Technology (HKUST) was built in 1991 - it had taken up some of the Movietown land for development. Of course, now the studio premises are a complete wreck awaiting redevelopment. They have recently been given a Heritage grading but this means very little in HK and certainly doesn't prevent demolition  and redevelopment. However, I would hope that any new building here could incorporate the iconic Shaw House as part of the development and perhaps even turn it into a Shaws museum (I know a few people who would kill their grannies to get involved in something like that).

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