KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 12 — Hong Kong cinema of the 1980s and 90s earned global acclaim for its high-octane action thrillers, with classics like Ringo Lam’s City on Fire and John Woo’s A Better Tomorrow setting the standard.

The legacy continued into the 2000s, with hits such as Andrew Lau and Alan Mak’s Infernal Affairs and Johnnie To’s Election proving that the city’s action filmmaking remained top-notch.