''Stowaway'' (), alternatively known as ''Snakeheads'', is a 2001 Hong Kong action film based on the true story of a group of stowaways from Fuzhou illegally immigrating to the United Kingdom in 2000. In the incident, 58 illegal immigrants suffocated to death in an airtight truck of tomatoes at

Dover, England Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidston ...

on 20 June 2000."China Cracks Down on Illegal Immigration"
'' People's Daily'', 2000-08-04. Retrieved on 2008-11-10.

Synopsis

In June 2000, a group of Fuzhou people spend a fortune for various reasons to be smuggled to the United Kingdom. They are first sent to Quailin, before crossing the border to

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. After waiting there for fake documents for flying to

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

, they head to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. They are unable to travel to Moscow as the people smugglers are detected. The plan is changed and all the illegal immigrants have to travel to

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

by car, then walk across the border to the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

through

snowstorms A winter storm is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In temperate continental climates, these storms are not necessar ...

. They are able to sneak into the Netherlands and hide in a truck to enter into the United Kingdom, but the airtight space in the truck results in the deaths of 58 people, leaving only 2 survivors.

Cast

Julian Cheung Julian Cheung Chi-lam (born 27 August 1971), better known by his stage name Chilam, is a Hong Kong singer and actor. Cheung is popularly known for his role as Guo Jing in the 1994 TV series adaptation of the ''Wuxia'' novel, '' The Legend o ...

as Chow Tai-Fuk *

Athena Chu Athena Chu (born 25 October 1971) is a Hong Kong actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Zixia Fairy in ''A Chinese Odyssey'' (1995). Early life and education On 25, October 1971, Chu was born in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Her father was ...

as Kam Lan *

Hu Bing Hu Bing (born February 14, 1971) is a Chinese actor, model, singer, designer and producer. He started as a fashion model in 1990 and been a top male model in China for over 20 years. He won the "Top Chinese Male Model" title in 1991 and was the ...

as Chi-Ming * Chang Chia-chia as Ming-Wai * Benny Lai as Vincent *

Oscar Leung Oscar Leung (, born 1979) is an actor previously contracted to TVB. His uncle is the actor Bryan Leung. Filmography TV dramas Films Micro Film , - ! colspan="3" style="background: #DAA520;" , My AOD Favourite Awards , - , - ! colspan ...

as * Michael Chow as Yiu-Chung * Jady Lee as Siu-Tsui * Annie Wu as Si-Nga * Mou Feilian as Kuen Jie * Chan Jun Kin as Hang Jai

Production

Filming locations took place in Fuzhou,

, and England.

References

External links

* * 2001 films Hong Kong films 2000s Cantonese-language films Films directed by Clarence Fok 2000s Hong Kong films {{2000s-HongKong-film-stub