''Whispers and Moans'' () is a 2007

Hong Kong film The cinema of Hong Kong ( zh, t=香港電影) is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former British colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of pol ...

directed by

Herman Yau Herman Yau Lai-to (; born 13 July 1961) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter and cinematographer. Filmography * 1987: '' Tragic Hero'' – Co-Cinematographer * 1987: '' No Regret'' – Director * 1988: '' The Truth'' – Cinematographe ...

. It is based on the 2006 book ''Whispers and Moans'' by Yeeshan Yang, investigating the Hong Kong sex trade. It has a Category III rating in Hong Kong.HK cinemagic: ''Whispers and Moans''
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Plot summary

Elsie (

Yan Ng Yan Ng Yat-Yin (Chinese:吳日言, s=吴日言, first=t) (born 25 November 1983) is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer and actress. Filmography *''My Sweetie (2004) *'' Moments of Love'' (2005) *''The Unusual Youth'' (2005) *'' It Had to Be You!'' (2005 ...

) is a social worker with an interest in the rights of sex workers, despite this she is naive as to the lives of prostitutes, and finds it impossible to be accepted into their milieu. This changes when she comes to the aid of

nightclub hostess ''Nightclub Hostess'' (French title: ''L'Entraîneuse'') is a 1940 French language motion picture drama directed by Albert Valentin. The screenplay was written by Charles Spaak. The film stars Michèle Morgan, Gilbert Gil, Gisèle Préville, J ...

Happy (Chan Mei-hei). Happy introduces Elsie to her colleagues and Elsie is able to observe first hand the business of

prostitution in Hong Kong Prostitution in Hong Kong is itself legal, but organised prostitution is illegal, as there are laws against keeping a vice establishment, causing or procuring another to be a prostitute, living on the prostitution of others, or public solicitatio ...

. At the top of the scale are those who become the long term

mistresses Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a d ...

of the wealthy, receiving a retainer and having their living expenses paid for, a step towards this being to be kept for a shorter term, for months or weeks. Nana (

Mandy Chiang Mandy Nga-man Chiang is a Hong Kong singer formerly signed to the Emperor Entertainment Group's Music Icon Records. Her music career first began in 2002 when she was partnered with Yumiko Cheng (鄭希怡) and Maggie Lau (劉思惠) to form the ...

) and her sister Aida (Monie Tung) began their careers as underage prostitutes in an underground brothel, before graduating to become legal hostesses on turning 18. However Aida has become a drug addict and over a matter of days makes a descent that would normally occur over years. Those unable to leave the prostitute trade, as they grow older, work at small one woman brothels, with a much reduced rate for sex and a higher turnover of customers than that found at nightclubs. A very small number, such as Coco (

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 ...

), become mama-sans. However Aida's addiction is so great that she cannot work even as a brothel prostitute and instead becomes a street prostitute, normally the fate of much older women. Also working the streets is the

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through ...

Jo ( Don Li) whose goal is to save up enough money for

sex reassignment surgery Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a transgender or transsexual person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their identified gender, and a ...

, her boyfriend is Tony (

Patrick Tang Patrick Tang (; born 6 May 1974) is a Hong Kong singer, actor, and TV show host who has been involved in numerous drama and movie productions. He has three sisters. He started his career with TVB, where he has been from 2000 to the present day. ...

) who works as a

male prostitute Male prostitution is the act or practice of men providing sexual services in return for payment. It is a form of sex work. Although clients can be of any gender, the vast majority are older males looking to fulfill their sexual needs. Male pro ...

. One of Tony's customers is the mistress of a triad boss and the film ends with Tony's slaying.

Cast and roles

– Coco *

Candice Yu Candice Yu (Yu On On; born Yu De Ying; 22 October 1959) is a Hong Kong film actress and occasional singer best known for her films with Shaw Brothers Studio of the 1970s and 1980s. She was the first wife of Hong Kong actor Chow Yun-fat. Film c ...

– Jenny *

– Nana *

Monie Tung Monie Tung (; born 26 November 1980) is a Hong Kong film and television entertainer, programme host and stage actress. Early life Tung started in the industry when she was 6 years old, appearing in the children's television show ''430 Space Shut ...

– Aida *

– Elsie, the social worker * Don Li – Jo *

– Tony *

Chan Mei-hei Chan may refer to: Places *Chan (commune), Cambodia *Chan Lake, by Chan Lake Territorial Park in Northwest Territories, Canada People *Chan (surname), romanization of various Chinese surnames (including 陳, 曾, 詹, 戰, and 田) * Chan Caldwe ...

Karen Tong Karen may refer to: * Karen (name), a given name and surname * Karen (slang), a term and meme for a demanding woman displaying certain behaviors People * Karen people, an ethnic group in Myanmar and Thailand ** Karen languages or Karenic ...

* Chik King-Man *

Ken Lo Ken Lo (Kenneth Houi Kang Low) (born 19 March 1957) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, and stuntman. He is known for his martial arts and stunt work as a former member of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team, most notably for his antagonistic role as Jo ...

* Cheung Chi-Kwong *

Emotion Cheung Emotions are mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. There is currently no scientific consensus on a definitio ...

* Cheung Wing-Hong * Wong Tak-bun * Wong Man-Wai * Sherming Yiu

Awards

''Whispers and Moans'' received a "Film of Merit" award at the 2007

Hong Kong Film Critics Society Award The Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards () are the annual awards given by the Hong Kong Film Critics Society The Hong Kong Film Critics Society (HKFCS; Traditional Chinese: 香港電影評論學會), founded in 1995, is the peak organization of ...

References

External links

* *
loveHKfilm entry
{{Herman Yau 2007 films Hong Kong films Films about prostitution in Hong Kong Films directed by Herman Yau Films about trans women

Plot summary

Cast and roles

Awards

See also

References

External links