The Taxi Driver - David Chiang (1975) - Shanghai Commercial Bank Building, Mongkok

The main plot of the film follows three rather unpleasant characters who share a room in the same place that Chen rents. They are plotting on robbing a local bank with the help of an insider. The target of their crime is the "Hang King Bank" but the newly built "Shacombank" building on the north east corner of Argyle Street and Nathan Road is the building used for establishing shots in the film. It's another of those not very long lasting buildings because despite being opened in the mid 70s, it had been demolished by 1997. The Shanghai Commercial Bank HQ is still here but in a newer more modern building.

Following the robbery we get a decent glimpse of the road junction with the HSBC building on the opposite corner.

The Lady Professional - Lily Ho Li-li (1971) - HSBC Building Mongkok

The establishing shot for the company run by the gold smuggling gang is the HSBC building in Mongkok. It had only been open a couple of years when the film was shot so was still quite modern for the time. The curved concrete shades above each of the window apertures make it quite distinctive. It's still there. In fact I was in there just the other day withdrawing some dosh.

Heisser Hafen Hongkong - Horst Frank (1962) - Nathan Road, Mongkok

Here is a shot from Heisser Hafen Hongkong showing the stretch of Nathan Road close to the junction with Mongkok Road. The building in the distance centre frame was the old Pioneer Building which contained the Royal Theatre. The red/blue glass windowed Pioneer Centre now stands there. Michael Hui shot the cinema heist scene at the Royal Theatre for The Private Eyes. This movie was shot in 1962, so only about two years after the building was opened.

Ferry to Hong Kong - Curt Jurgens (1959) - Shantung Street, Mongkok

Many years ago when I covered Ferry to Hong Kong, I did a general post about the old Yaumatei Typhoon shelter. I was recently looking at my screencaps again and spotted the following image that I assumed was somewhere in the Typhoon Shelter but I didn't really give it any more thought.

The metal containers in the background piqued my interest and I found out that they were silos containing vegetable oil located at the corner of Shantung Street and what was (it seems to have been subsumed by Ferry Street) Tak Cheong Street at the Yaumatei waterfront. Look carefully at the far left hand side of the image and you can just about make out the edge of old Mongkok ferry pier at the very end of Shantung Street.

Sai Yeung Choi Street South - Now and Then

Following on from my recent post for The Angel Strikes Again, I thought I would take a quick trip down to the junction of Sai Yeung Choi Street South and Soy Street to try and grab a comparison photo. Bear in mind that this area in Mongkok is one of the busiest places in Kowloon these days, not just for people but also for traffic, and so getting an exact match of the angle seen in the screen capture was a bit of a faff.

The Hollywood Theatre, where much of this scene played out, was off camera to the right. It closed in 1980 and the building was demolished and replaced by the current one, Hollywood Plaza - HK loves to maintain names of older buildings for their newer replacements - was completed in 1984. You can see in the image below though that the new building has a similar square canopy over the pavement area. 

The Angel Strikes Again - Lily Ho (1968) - Hollywood Theatre, Mongkok

Someone posted online somewhere (can't remember where) that they were really impressed with the street mockup used for the cinema sequence in this film. Granted, much of the on street sequences were filmed on the (very obviously) fake Movietown lots, however, the cinema sequence was shot at a real place. It was the Hollywood Theatre on the corner of Sai Yeung Choi Street South and Soy Street. The cinema is long gone (it closed in 1980) but note that at the time of filming it was showing the 1967 Shaw film, Susanna (Chinese title: 珊珊). Hollywood Plaza stands on the site now (not to be confused with "Plaza Hollywood" above Diamond Hill MTR station).

This is where agent 009, posing as a buyer, agrees to meet the gang to pay for some explosives. 

This last image is great because it shows the view looking south down Sai Yeung Choi Street South, with Soy Street crossing in front. In the distance is part of the old Kwong Wah Hospital site.

The Young Rebel - David Chiang (1975) - Sifu Chi Wai's Wing Chun School, Mongkok Road

Here's a location I never thought I would see again. In the film, this is the location of Gen Lai's kung fu school with his sifu being portrayed by Yuen Siu-tin ("Beggar So" from Drunken Master for those who need reminding). Long term readers may remember this place was also used for Bruce Lee True Story (aka Bruce Lee the Man, the Myth), so you can click the link and read all about it there. It was located at 28 Mongkok Road.

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - Kam Lam Street, Mongkok

Jack appears to live on Kam Lam Street, because at the end of the film he leaves his apartment and is immediately followed by what turn out to be a couple of androids. He is approached by the brother of one of his victims, intent on revenge, and manages to avoid all projectiles as the androids engage the brother in what has to be the lamest gunfight in the history of cinema. This was all filmed at the junction with Soy Street. I believe the tree mural is still there.

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - China Cafe, Mongkok

More confirmation that this film was shot circa 2019 by the fact that the famous China Cafe serves as one of the locations. This is where Dr Bergman meets Jack to tell him what he has found out about his background and why he is ill. This place was a very popular filming location and sadly closed on the very last day of 2019. Sean Tierney visited the location when it was still operating. If you're reading this Sean, how about restarting your channel?

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - Kam Mong Restaurant, Portland Street

Jack goes out for dinner with April at the Kam Mong Restaurant on Portland Street. Sadly, it looks like this is another one that fell by the wayside and closed due to the Covid restrictions. The space is now occupied by a place called "Fish Villa".

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - Alleyway off Soy Street, Mongkok

As Jack is being followed by the mysterious bald guy, he heads down an alleyway between Soy Street and Changsha Street to lose him, but when he turns around to confront him in the alleyway, he has disappeared. The Sun Ming Building can be seen on Soy Street in the background. If this place rings a bell it might be because it is the building that replaced the famous Wan Loi Tea House that was used in Hard Boiled.

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - Portland Street, Mongkok

Portland Street is one of the recurring locations in this film. In one scene, Jack is once again following April. In the first images, he is walking past the Tung Nam Lou Hotel on the corner with Pitt Street. The same rough area can be seen in the end scene as Jack is again walking along Portland Street, but this time next to the junction with Hamilton Street. The building on the corner in the last image is the C.P.M.S Yaumatei Church.

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - Nelson Street, Mongkok

Jack emerges from the metro system at what is exit E1 of Mongkok station. This thoroughfare was originally Nelson Street but this section (and the same on the other side of Nathan Road where exit E2 is) is now fully pedestrianised. Also, the Langham Place Shopping Mall removed a big chunk of Nelson Street on this side of Nathan Road.

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - Mongkok Road Pedestrian Bridge

Jack follows his target up onto the pedestrian flyover that runs above Mongkok Road.

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - Shantung Street, Mongkok

Jack is hired to kill a man and follows him from a laundrette down a alleyway, but passes along Shantung Street First with the Hollywood Shopping Centre in the background. That blue lighting has since been removed. Despite this movie only being a few years old so many businesses seen on screen have since disappeared, mainly thanks to Covid.

Expired - Ryan Kwanten (2021) - Soy Street, Mongkok

I'm going to finish up 2025 with a film I had heard about afew years back but then forgot about. I was expecting to hear more about it but, after watching it, I realise it sank into obscurity because it's just a bit of a dull film. Originally called Loveland, the film was renamed to Expired. Quite fitting because that's what happened to my interest about ten minutes into it.

To be fair it is a low-budget independent Australian movie. That doesn't excuse the confusing plot and uninspiring dialogue though. The locations are all over the shop, making it a real pain to post about them in any sort of linear fashion but the cinematography is nice. I just wish they had saved their money on the Hong Kong airfares and put it into some better "futuristic" effects though. You'd think shooting in Hong Kong would offer the opportunity of some great locations, but the vast majority are just the rather shabby looking streets of Mongkok, making me wonder what the point was. They could've just saved their dosh and filmed it in Australia, at least at street level. The film was released in 2021 but it looks like a pre-Covid Hong Kong on view. 

Anyway, the film centres around a hitman called Jack (Ryan Kwanten) who stalks, and then forms a friendship with, April (Jillian Nguyen), a girlie bar singer/performer. Jack's ill because he is the product of some sort of corporate experimentation and the company want him back for tests. But then all of a sudden he is better again and I have no idea why.

The film opens with Jack walking along Soy Street on his way to meet a policeman who tells him who to kill, and gives him the info and money. Soy Street is probably the most used location in the film and keeps cropping up from a variety of different angles throughout. I think I got them all, more or less, in the screencaps below which are from multiple points through the film.

The robot thing in that lower image (above) used to stand outside a cafe called "Double Happiness Cart Noodles" - 旺囍車仔麵. I think the place was a victim of Hong Kong Covid policy because it closed soon after the film was shot. The shop sign outside had a huge bowl of noodles stuck to it which also made it into the film (below).

Soy Street also pops up in a scene when Jack is being followed by a mystery bald man (Andrew Ng).

The west side of Soy Street also pops up later in the film as Jack tracks down and follows Dr Bergman (Hugo Weaving).