Since 2005, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has designated October 27th as ‘World Day for Audiovisual Heritage’ to acknowledge the importance of audiovisual heritage to regional culture, and to enhance the public’s knowledge of the preservation of audiovisual heritage.

In support of ‘World Day for Audiovisual Heritage’, the Hong Kong Film Archive will present the 4K digitally restored versions of A Chinese Odyssey Part One—Pandora’s Box (1995) and A Chinese Odyssey Part Two—Cinderella (1995). Renowned director Jeff Lau’s rampant imagination not only matches the caliber of Stephen Chow’s masterful performance but also infuses Mo Lei Tau (nonsensical) humour with touching elements of romance, making the two films enduring classics in Hong Kong comedy cinema. The two films have become undisputed classics of Hong Kong comedy, and are featured in the Archive’s ‘100 Must-See Hong Kong Movies’.

In 2025, the 4K digital restoration of the films was made possible through the provision of the films’ original negatives, Cantonese soundtracks, and subtitle negatives by Media Asia Film Distribution (HK) Limited. In addition to removing scratches, flickers, and stains from the images and reducing background noise in the soundtracks, the restoration team also added the original bilingual subtitles back to the films. For colour grading, the team consulted both the Archive’s prints and digital materials from Media Asia, while incorporating professional input from members of the films’ production team to allow these two classics to be screened with the sound and images close to the original theatrical release quality.