Next up is one of my favourite Hong Kong movies, Isabella, although it was set and shot in Macau. The story is set in the run up to the Macau handover in December 1999 and follows corrupt police Inspector Ma (Chapman To) who is shocked to find out that a girl who has been following him around is his illegitimate daughter from a school days love affair. We follow them as they bond and he tries to mend his ways as he realises he has some extra responsibility now that this girl, Yan (played by the excellent Isabella Leong) has entered his life.
There are lots of bits of Macau just prior to the time when it all got ruined by the big casino resort developments. This was made the year I arrived in Hong Kong to live and I think it took us a good year or so to get over to Macau, by which time the Grand Lisboa - that horrible blot on Macau's skyline - was already under construction. Thankfully, I had managed to catch Macau in more undeveloped times when I visited one weekend in 1996.
Anyway, my inability to travel to Macau at the moment (I haven't been since 2016 and Macau is closed to non-residents...unless you are a rich Mainland gambler) means that all of these locations have been identified via GoogleEarth and Streetview. I haven't been able to get them all but there are enough here to make a good selection for those who are interested.
First up is close to the start of the film as Ma walks up a road on the way home. This shot is looking down Travessa do Padre Narciso. The coloured wall posts in the background belong to what was once the Palácio do Governador (i.e Macau Governer's residence) but is now the Macau Govt HQ (Sede do Governo da Região Administrativa Especial de Macau da República Popular da China).
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