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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Wendy Ide

The Last Dance review – the Chinese funeral home comedy you’ve been waiting for

Dayo Wong in The Last Dance.
Dayo Wong in The Last Dance: ‘complex and satisfying’. Photograph: Trinity Cine Asia

A Hong Kong wedding planner whose business was scuppered by Covid, Dominic (Dayo Wong) finds a new career in the funeral business. It turns out that he has a flair for the death industry, but there’s just one problem: he needs to win over Master Man (Michael Hui), a cantankerous and conservative Taoist priest.

This likable Cantonese-language comedy drama starts out as an odd couple story but evolves into something more complex and satisfying: a film about tradition, gender roles and family tensions, with Master Man’s straight-talking paramedic daughter Yuet (Michelle Wai, impressive) increasingly taking a central role in the story. It’s worth watching, for the strong performances across the board and for the sensitively handled insights into Taoist death rituals.

  • In UK and Irish cinemas

Watch a trailer for The Last Dance.
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