At The Movies: Funeral rites meet modern times in Hong Kong drama The Last Dance

The Last Dance (NC16)

126 minutes, now showing
★★★★☆

The story: The pandemic has devastated Hong Konger Dominic’s (Dayo Wong) wedding planning business. When Taoist priest Master Man (Michael Hui) seeks someone to handle the business side of his funeral rites company, the cash-strapped executive steps in. Their partnership is fraught with tension, further strained by family dynamics – particularly concerning Master Man’s daughter Yuet (Michelle Wai), who has been denied succession because she is a woman. 

Despite what its setting might suggest, Hong Kong writer-director Anselm Chan’s film is not fundamentally about death. Rather, he uses a funeral business as a lens to examine the burden of patriarchal expectations and the toll of generational sacrifice.

The Last Dance opens as a dark comedy exploring the clash between old Hong Kong – embodied by the gruff Master Man – and the new, represented by Dominic, who hopes to revitalise the traditional business with merchandise, marketing and customer-focused strategies. 

Their friction generates sharp exchanges, such as when Master Man attempts to discourage the debt-ridden Dominic during corpse preparation by noting “The stench is unbearable, isn’t it?”, only to receive the retort “The stench of poverty is worse.”

Through a series of concise but affecting character portraits, Chan introduces various funeral-service clients, each offering Dominic an opportunity to prove his worth while providing fascinating glimpses into Hong Kong’s funeral traditions. 

Chan’s camera examines death without flinching – hence the NC16 rating – showing details of cleaning, embalming, dressing and make-up application.

There is even an intimate look at an exhumation. The Chinese wine and metal tools used to wash and scrape the flesh from the bones are in full view.

This frank approach aligns with Chan’s belief that taboos only impede the grieving process.

The film’s energy peters out when it shifts focus midway to explore the tense patriarchal dynamics within Master Man’s clan. The scenes involving the living somehow lack the vitality of those centred on death. However, it rebuilds momentum towards a finale that effectively resolves the issues raised in previous scenes.

Fittingly, The Last Dance concludes with a funeral that heralds new beginnings.

Chan’s third feature – he helmed romantic comedies Ready O/R Rot (2023) and Ready O/R Knot (2021) – handles a sensitive subject with respect and creativity. While the pacing falters in the middle section, the film succeeds in its ambitious goal of using funeral rites as a metaphor for broader societal changes. 

The strong performances from Wong and Hui anchor the story, their generational conflict serving as a microcosm of Hong Kong’s struggle between tradition and modernity.

Hot take: This heartfelt exploration of death traditions manages to feel more alive than most films about the living.