Cageman depicts the lives of a group of middle-aged men sharing one cheap cage-home flat in Hong Kong. These forgotten members of society have become the subject of news and discourses as their dilapidated building faces demolishment, and they are forced to relocate. Featuring an ensemble cast of low-income citizens, the film steers clear of sentimental melodrama, vulgar comedy, and radical denunciation. Instead, it presents a blend of absurd realism, rich emotion, and relentless street humour that culminates in a surreal and metaphorical ending. Each resident grapples with their own struggles as a marginalised individual. The crisis of demolition creates internal divisions: should they relocate and seek compensation, or should they insist on staying? The film serves as a poignant reflection of the predicaments of pre-1997 Hong Kong.

Jacob Cheung is part of the second wave of Hong Kong New Wave cinema, focusing on overlooked individuals in society. Cageman stands as his representative work with outstanding performances from the cast and masterful long takes in the narrow corridors of the cage-home flat. The film premiered at the Hong Kong International Film Festival and received enthusiastic responses, but the theatrical version was cut by 20 minutes. It was classified as a Category III film due to the use of strong language yet still won four major awards, including Best Film at the Hong Kong Film Award.

The restoration was made using the original 35mm picture, edit-out and optical sound negatives preserved at the Hong Kong Film Archive, Leisure and Cultural Services Department. The duration reflects the original cut shown at the world premiere. The restoration was undertaken at L’Immagine Ritrovata.

Cageman is one of the films under M+ Restored, an initiative supported by CHANEL.

The screening on 14 November will be followed by a talk with the director of Cageman, Jacob Cheung. This talk will be held in Cantonese.

Jacob Cheung (b. 1959, Hong Kong) has worked as an assistant director and producer. His directorial debut was Lai Shi, China's Last Eunuch (1988), followed by Beyond the Sunset (1989) and Cageman, both of which won Best Film at the Hong Kong Film Awards. He is known for directing artistic films. Later, he developed his career in Chinese Mainland, with A Battle of Wits (2006) achieving both critical acclaim and box office success.