M+ Cinema spring edition

M+ is proud to announce the world premiere of its first M+ Restored film, The System (1979) by pioneering Hong Kong filmmaker Peter Yung. A jewel of Hong Kong New Wave cinema, the film will be featured as one of the three special programmes at this year’s Hong Kong International Film Festival. The other two programmes include a roundtable discussion on the restoration of Chinese-language cinema and a screening of Trương Minh Quý’s latest film, Viet and Nam (2024).

Complementing the opening of the M+ Special Exhibition The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series: Picasso for Asia—A Conversation in March, Jockey Club Community Outreach and Arts Education Programmes: Picasso on Film—The Making of an Icon includes several screenings about Picasso’s life, art, and creative circle, exploring how he crafted his image for a global audience. Selected titles include The Mystery of Picasso (1956) by Henri-Georges Clouzot, On the French Riviera with Man Ray and Picasso (2021) by François Lévy-Kuentz, Guernica (1950) by Alain Resnais, and the short animation Minotauromaquia (2004) by Juan Pablo Etcheverry.

Also screening is Jennifer Baichwal’s Manufactured Landscapes (2006), which follows Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky as he travels through China, capturing the large-scale environmental impact of its industrial revolution. Amélie Ravalec’s Japanese Avant-Garde Pioneers (2025) features radical artists such as Nobuyoshi Araki, Daidō Moriyama, Eikoh Hosoe, Tanaami Keiichi, and Yokoo Tadanori, who transformed art and society amid Japan’s post-war political upheaval. The documentary sets the stage for M+’s Asian Avant-Garde Film Festival 2025, happening 30 May to 1 June.

Stair in the Dark: Dissonant Pleasures highlights some of the most reviled Hollywood films that have made a comeback in recent times. Directed by Catherine Hardwicke, Twilight (2008) faced criticism for its questionable romance and cringeworthy performances. However, after seventeen years, people have begun to reconsider its cultural impact. Paul Verhoeven’s Showgirls (1995), initially a failure, has become a cult favourite for its campy charm.