To some, doors represent opportunity. To others, they can be barriers. // Part contemporary dance and part digital documentary, 12 DOORS is an international collaboration between Korean Australian installation artist Jonathan Kim and choreographer Sunyoung Lee working alongside dancers with disabilities to explore obstacles they have passed through to become independent members of society. Represented as twelve key moments in the dancer’s lives, or ‘doors’, it is the story of when those doors were found locked, when they were guarded and when their families were there to help them through. // Featuring dedicated dancers from Light Sound Friends and 29-Dong Dance Theatre, it is a fearless and innovative exploration of the journey to reach the final door.

The conclusion to the lovelorn trilogy that started with DAYS OF BEING WILD, 2046 looks simultaneously to the 1960s setting of its predecessor, In the Mood for Love, and a surreal vision of a science fiction future. The film rejoins Tony Leung Chiu-wai’s Chow Mo-wan in Singapore, where he makes a living as a writer. In his hotel room, he begins to write a novel about a train that takes its characters to a mysterious place called 2046. // As the story cuts back and forth from this science fiction narrative to the life of its writer, and his relationships with a series of women (Gong Li, Faye Wong, Zhang Ziyi), the different narratives begin to bleed into one another, and characters return transformed. A candy coloured, sci-fi world intersects throughout the film, creating a dreamscape narrative where characters from one story also exist in this parallel world. // A surreal meditation on the relationship between storytelling, memory and autobiography, 2046 finds Wong at his most ambitious.

Rare, unforeseen footage takes us on a cinematic voyage through some of the most iconic buildings in the world, and into the life and passions of one of the great modern architects, Alvar Aalto. Intimate and profound, find insight to the talented man's fascinating compulsions, both for his work and his great love, fellow architect Aino Aalto.

Grounded in strong characters, bold themes, and subtle storytelling, BOOGIE NIGHTS was an auteur-making film for director P.T. Anderson, celebrated for its ensemble cast, with career-best performances from both Burt Reynold and Mark Wahlberg, alongside the marvelous Philip Seymour Hoffman, Julianne Moore, and William H. Macy.

A shocking diagnosis spurs forth and motivates a woman to find a long-lost child, one she was forced to abandon at only fifteen. With a middle-aged-man in the middle of a burnout and an overenthusiastic blind archivist by her side, the search becomes a journey that is as madcap as it is poignant.

The film that catapulted Wong Kar Wai to international acclaim, CHUNGKING EXPRESS plunges headlong into the frenetic streets of Hong Kong. Featuring a bifurcated narrative – the first part set on the Kowloon Peninsula, and the second part on Hong Kong Island – CHUNGKING EXPRESS envisions Hong Kong as a melting pot, where different worlds intersect. CHUNGKING EXPRESS finds the filmmaker at his freest, setting his lonely and hopelessly romantic characters on a collision course in a bustling food court. This anarchic energy is infused throughout the film, from Andrew Lau Wai-keung and Christopher Doyle’s startling camerawork to the editing, which Wong Kar Wai and William Chang did simultaneously, each taking one storyline in the film. But for all the wildness in the production, the central performances – and especially those of Faye Wong and Tony Leung – are nothing short of pitch perfect.

Three cousins separated by circumstance but bound by blood. Orphaned Mata believes she has no whānau, living out childhood alone. Home on the land, educated Makareta flees an arranged marriage, leaving behind the cheeky, dutiful Missy who takes her role as guardian. As the years pass, loss of land seems imminent, and reunion unlikely, until one chance encounter changes everything.

Wong’s second film established many of the characteristics that would become hallmarks of his career: inventive play with narrative structure, lush visual style, languid mood, and effortlessly cool characters. // Set in 1960s Hong Kong, the film follows the rakish, existential Yuddy (Leslie Cheung) and the women who come into and out of his life. With an extended cast that includes Maggie Cheung, Andy Lau, Carina Yau and Jackie Cheung, the film’s sinuous narrative winds its way from the backstreets of Hong Kong to the fevered jungles of the Philippines, lushly realised by cinematographer Christopher Doyle, in his first collaboration with Wong. // This 4K digital restoration was undertaken from the 35 mm original camera negative by the Criterion Collection in collaboration with L’Immagine Ritrovata and One Cool.

The sequel nobody asked for and seemingly nobody saw was nonetheless universally praised, with criticism especially positive for this new, extended director’s cut. Presented as a special addition to the program, to judge just how thoroughly indebted this new breed of horror filmmakers are to Kubrick’s THE SHINING.

While seen by some upon first release as a disappointment, Kubrick’s final film has undergone a hard-fought reassessment in recent years. Set over a night of secret debauchery and starring Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise (the strained coupling propelling incredible performances), was this film a misunderstood classic? A victim of unreasonable expectations or studio meddling? We’ll invite you to discuss this with us after the screening.

Wong Kar Wai’s darkest film is a companion film of sorts to CHUNGKING EXPRESS, venturing further into the seedy side of Hong Kong’s night life. A noir-infused anthology of stories, FALLEN ANGELS returns to the criminal underworld of Wong’s debut, AS TEARS GO BY, following a reluctant hitman, his goth handler, an unhinged, mute burglar, and the mysterious woman who continually crosses his path. // Christopher Doyle’s rough, off-the-cuff photography invests the film with an anarchic sense of possibility, pulsing with the neon rhythms of the Hong Kong night. Released on the eve of the 1997 handover of Hong Kong’s sovereignty, the film offers a bleak and alienated portrait of desperate and disaffected youth. // With its freeform plotting and ultra-stylised aesthetics, FALLEN ANGELS still feels contemporary, even two decades after its original release.

POST SCREENING Q&A WITH DIRECTOR CLARA LAW // FLOATING LIFE is a poignant and funny film about a Chinese family that falls apart after moving from Hong Kong to Australia. Gradually they find a way of coming together again. // Director Clara Law deftly encapsulates the immigrant experience as one cut off from history, both from one’s personal history and the nation’s history. What does existence mean away from one’s country, the non-existence of an existence when one is cut off from one’s roots?

HAPPY TOGETHER finds the world turned upside down – literally – as Wong trades his usual Hong Kong setting for the unfamiliar locale of Buenos Aires. HAPPY TOGETHER is the story of a relationship told in three parts through the eyes of Lai Yiu-fai (Tony Leung Chiu-wai). // The film charts the intense push/pull of his relationship with Ho and his friendship with another exile, Chang (Chen Chang). In 1997, Wong Kar Wai was the first Chinese director to win Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival for HAPPY TOGETHER. With its heady mix of visual style and deep passion, it’s a film that finds the director at the height of his talents; in large part due to the electrifying on-screen partnership of Cheung and Leung and the strong collaboration behind the camera with art director/editor William Chang and cinematographer Christopher Doyle.

Featuring an all-star Argentinian cast, this new comedy from Sebastián Borensztein is a rousing riotous tale of working-class solidarity and collective revenge. It’s 2001, Argentina is in a deep depression, and a retired soccer star is being railroaded by a conniving bank manager in his attempt to join a cooperative and support his community—so he turns to more illicit means to raise some cash, all under the co-op's nose.

Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu-wai, star in Wong Kar Wai’s most beloved film, beautifully restored for its 20th anniversary. // A spiritual sequel to DAYS OF BEING WILD, the film returns to the glamorous Hong Kong of the early 1960s. Neighbours in a cramped inner-city apartment building, Maggie Cheung’s Mrs Chan and Tony Leung Chiu-wai’s Chow Mo-wan begin to suspect their perpetually absent partners are having an affair, and in facing this possibility, begin to form their own emotional bond. An intimate tale of missed connections and unrequited love, the film was painstakingly constructed by Wong and his collaborators over several years. A triumph of costume and production design, In the Mood for Love is an elegant and nostalgic evocation of the Hong Kong of Wong’s childhood, and an unforgettable meditation on love, loneliness, and the passage of time. This 4K digital restoration was undertaken from the 35 mm original camera negative by the Criterion Collection in collaboration with L’Immagine Ritrovata and Jet Tone.

Kicking off a week-long odyssey into one of the most celebrated Asian filmmakers of modern times, experience Mercury CX transformed into a Hong Kong style lounge bar for this exciting red carpet event celebrating the cinema of Wong Kar Wai. // With champagne on arrival and a glamorous afterparty following the screening, let the delicious cocktails, food and music of another era take you on a hauntingly beautiful journey infused with neon and nostalgic atmosphere. // Featuring what is considered one of Wong Kar Wai’s finest works and labelled “one of the most beautiful, romantic films of all time” by critic Fico Cangiano IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, this Opening Night Gala promises an evening infused with atmosphere and nostalgia.

Monica Vitti, Jeanne Moreau, and Marcello Mastroianni star as disillusioned artists and alienated lovers, a night in their lives spent slipping-through, circling the empty streets of an abandoned Milan. Sensually photographed with Antonioni’s signature knack for visual modernism.

From acclaimed actress Robin Wright comes her directorial debut, the poignant story of one woman’s search for meaning in the vast and harsh American wilderness. Finding herself unable to stay connected to the world she once knew, she retreats into the magnificent, unforgiving wilds of the Rockie Mountain Range, brought from the brink of death, desperate to live again.

Winston Duke spends his days on a remote outpost, watching the lives of others. When one dies, several candidates—unborn souls—arrive to fill their place, determine their suitability, or else face oblivion. However, as each meet one another, they find themselves changed, challenged, as unexpected powers forge against fate, striking new paths. A heartfelt, meditative vision.

POST SCREENING Q&A WITH PRODUCER AND MERCURY CX CEO KARENA SLANINKA // As a special treat exclusively for Adelaide audiences, the Mercury CX is pleased to host a screening of this rare documentary portrait of Wong Kar Wai’s frequent collaborator; the eccentric, multi-talented cinematographer and Australian Hong Kong resident Christopher Doyle. // Showcasing Doyle's work using footage from his films such as Gus Van Sant's remake of Psycho, the film contains fascinating shots of Hong Kong street life in the city that Doyle has come to love and call his home. It is an intimate look at Doyle and his art with contributions from Wong Kar Wai and others who have worked alongside him. ORIENTATIONS: CHRIS DOYLE - STIRRED BUT NOT SHAKED captures the unique talents of this maverick, free spirit through an exploration of his work and the extraordinary life he leads.

Reunited after 2046, Tony Leung Chiuwai and Zhang Ziyi are electrifying as two kung fu masters bound by their traditions in a changing world. // Chronicling the life of Wing Chun master (and Bruce Lee’s legendary teacher) Ip Man (Leung), The Grandmaster opens during the tumultuous years of the Japanese occupation of China, which forced Ip Man and many other masters to flee to Hong Kong. Stripped of his wealth and community in exile, Ip Man broke with the tradition of keeping information close and taught his Wing Chun school to a wide array of students. For others, such as Gong Er, driven by grief and vengeance, she refused to keep the flame alive, taking the secrets of her school to the grave. // Nominated for Best Cinematography (Philippe Le Sourd) and Best Costume Design (William Chang) at the 2013 Academy Awards, The Grandmaster is a stunning film in every sense. Ten years in the making, Wong Kar Wai did extensive research, interviewing hundreds of masters to understand the essence of kung fu. Likewise, cast members, including Leung, trained for a year prior to production, lending a deep authenticity to the unforgettable action sequences.

POST SCREENING Q&A WITH DIRECTOR TONY AYRES // Based on writer/director Tony Ayres' own life, THE HOME SONG STORIES is an epic tale of mothers and sons, mothers and daughters, unrequited love, betrayal and secrets. // Tom (Darren Yap), a Chinese Australian man in his early forties, writes about his childhood where his mother - a Shanghai nightclub singer (Joan Chen) - struggles to raise her two children after moving to Australia in the seventies. // Beautifully shot and artfully designed, THE HOME SONG STORIES features strong performances and the kind of intimacy and honesty that you can only get from an autobiographical film.

In the latest film from Saudia Arabia’s pioneering female filmmaker, Haifaa Al Mansour (WADJDA), an ambitious young doctor at a small-town clinic decides to run in her local election. Confronted with the restriction of women's traditional roles at every turn, her audacious candidacy becomes the tale of one woman's quest to challenge the system and herself.

Alone, snowed in at an abandoned hotel, can one family handle the stress and strain of isolation? Especially when exacerbated by psychic powers, malicious ghosts, and a history of bloody violent murder? A pillar of horror filmmaking, infused with a menacing mystique that still compels viewers to their own madness. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, so relax, come see some classic cinema.

Picking up the wrong hitchhiker, clueless yuppies find themselves struck by outland terror in this truly grimy piece of cinema—Tobe Hooper’s seminal splatter masterpiece has been often emulated, but never bettered. Watch as Leatherface tries in vain to understand: where do these people keep coming from?

Valerie Taylor is a living legend, a glamorous conservationist and icon of the underwater world, who has made it her legacy to rehabilitate the way we perceive sharks and help protect the awe-inspiring and fearsome creatures. With beautifully restored footage, a sumptuous vision of the ocean and the majesty of marine life, follow her formidable journey and share in her passion.

While at first glance a strange inclusion among Kubrick’s favourite films, WHITE MEN CAN'T JUMP reveals itself to be a lost gem. Much like our two lead characters (Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson), the film displays a constant kinetic energy, all the while maintaining an easy, laid-back charm.