BUSAN (South Korea): In the 14 years since “Ashes of Time” was first released, Wong Kar-wai has risen to become one of the world’s most acclaimed directors. The fortunes of the film industry in his hometown of Hong Kong, however, have simultaneously plunged to the depths.

But the director believes he knows what has caused Hong Kong’s ills. The film industry there, he says, has lost its “spirit.”

Wong’s re-mastering of his martial arts epic – “Ashes of Time Redux” – has played to a packed house as part of the 13th Pusan International Film Festival’s Gala Presentation programme.

Before its special screening, Wong reflected on how much has changed since the original film first greeted an audience in 1994.

“There was a very different way we made films back in the early 1990s, and that’s what is needed in Hong Kong today,” he said. “We had a spirit back then and thought that anything was possible. The energy in this film is what we need in Hong Kong cinema today.”

The Hong Kong movie industry has fallen on lean years, with production numbers dropping to below 50 films per year, a far cry from the industry’s heyday in the late 1980s and early 1990s when around 300 films were being produced annually.

The industry has looked north in its efforts to combat the dramatic slide in numbers, with Hong Kong film-makers eager to take on co-productions with film companies from mainland China. It is a move that meets with Wong’s approval – simply as a matter of necessity.

“We shot this film in 1992 in China and back then co-productions were not that popular,” he said. “Today about 80 per cent of Hong Kong films are co-productions. In a way it showed the path forward.”

“Ashes of Time” – which stars a collection of Hong Kong screen idols including the late Leslie Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Carina Lau Kar-ling and Maggie Cheung Man-yuk – follows a cold-hearted killer in his search for the person who murdered the love of his life.

It was released at a time when Wong was still establishing himself in the film world and its highly stylised blend of drama and action helped establish the director on the international festival circuit.

“’Ashes of Time’ is a film that is very important to us,” Wong said. “It was the first film that my company (Jet Tone Productions) produced. And it was through this film that we learned to be independent. Without it there would never have been films like ‘Chungking Express’ and ‘In the Mood for Love.’”

Wong has since gone on to be named best director at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival (for 1997’s “Happy Together”) while critics across the globe have heaped praise on films such as 2000’s “In the Mood for Love,” which picked up a total of 31 domestic and international awards.

The director has digitally re-mastered “Ashes of Time,” while editing down some of the film’s more ponderous aspects, and has been taking it to festivals over the past six months, much to fans’ delight.

Wong was afforded a hero’s welcome in Busan, where his films have long been featured. While he warmly acknowledged the applause, he said he sometimes questioned his position as one of modern cinema’s more influential directors.

“In China there is a saying,” said Wong. “One person’s medicine can be another person’s poison. So my opinion on how I am regarded changes from time to time.”

The festival closes on Friday.—AFP