What keeps people in committed relationships? What does it take for a marriage to succeed and endure until death do them part? Ricky discovers the hows and whys after spending 40 years with his husband, Roger. Read about how ‘Forever 17,’ in the words of its director, shows us an achievable future for the LGBT community in BLTai’s recap of Taipei’s Golden Horse Film Festival entry.
The first part of the critically acclaimed Fireworks Trilogy directed by Kit Hung, ‘Forever 17,’ stars Lei Jeun Sek and Jun Leung as the younger versions of married couple Roger and Ricky, respectively, and is dedicated to the memory of Hong Kong queer icon Ellen Loo, who passed away the previous year. The film explores an imagined queer Hong Kong community through love and acceptance, betrayal and forgiveness, and honoring lifetime commitments.
Warning: Spoiler alert! Read at your own risk.
An aged red packet is discovered on the bedside table by an elderly man named Ricky as he straightens the bedroom. When he sees the fraying notes written on the red packet, it reminds him of many years ago, when he came out to his family. In a flashback, young Ricky tells his family that he fell in love with another man wherein his father immediately walks out. In the end, his mother holds his hands tightly while he sobs. He couldn’t help but wonder if there was another way to let them know that he was not like other boys, and if there had been, maybe things between him, his family, and Roger would have turned out differently. Ricky emerges from the apartment building where his boyfriend Roger is waiting for him nervously and gives him a tight hug to console him. The elderly Ricky recalls how he and Roger did not fall in love right away; rather, their relationship was a series of events from their everyday lives together, one after the other, rather than a romantic fairy tale. He thinks back to the first time he and Roger attended a gay parade and shared a kiss publicly when he realized that it was okay, to be honest with himself and to ignore the strange looks that other people would usually give him. Ricky’s growing self-awareness also allows him to share his romantic side with his family. He introduces Roger to his parents, who unexpectedly give him a warm reception and care for him as if he were their child. To Ricky’s delight, his family gives Roger a red packet on New Year’s Eve, signifying the beginning of a familiar relationship. Roger, in turn, introduces Ricky to his friends, but this group of people causes Ricky to wonder for days why he is still with Roger and how much he needs to understand someone to stay with them, as he finds that he would occasionally subtly cheat on him. He tries to ignore this and decides not to get upset about Roger’s malicious interactions with his friends. Until one day Ricky discovers Roger in bed with another person and walks out, with the latter hurrying after him. Ricky makes an effort to be angry, but ultimately, he extends forgiveness to Roger, and they make up.
After much opposition from various parties, including brutalities, same-sex marriage was made legal in Hong Kong a few years later. One of the first couples to marry is Ricky and Roger, supported by their family. They join a lesbian couple who has struggled since not being married during the wedding. This couple is unable to make decisions regarding their partner’s hospitalization because they are not legally bound hence the utter happiness of their hearts to finally have the right to get married. Meanwhile, Ricky and Roger, who have been together for eighteen years now, are hoping for better times ahead as they enter a new phase of their lives.
