Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysToronto Int'l Film FestivalIMDb TIFF Portrait StudioHispanic Heritage MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
IMDbPro

Joshua: Teenager vs. Superpower

  • 2017
  • TV-14
  • 1h 19m
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
1.7K
YOUR RATING
Joshua: Teenager vs. Superpower (2017)
When the Chinese Communist Party backtracks on its promise of autonomy to Hong Kong, teenager Joshua Wong decides to save his city. Rallying thousands of kids to skip school and occupy the streets, Joshua becomes an unlikely leader in Hong Kong and one of China's most notorious dissidents.
Play trailer2:14
1 Video
3 Photos
Documentary

When the Chinese Communist Party backtracks on its promise of autonomy to Hong Kong, teenager Joshua Wong decides to save his city. Rallying thousands of kids to skip school and occupy the s... Read allWhen the Chinese Communist Party backtracks on its promise of autonomy to Hong Kong, teenager Joshua Wong decides to save his city. Rallying thousands of kids to skip school and occupy the streets, Joshua becomes an unlikely leader in Hong Kong and one of China's most notorious d... Read allWhen the Chinese Communist Party backtracks on its promise of autonomy to Hong Kong, teenager Joshua Wong decides to save his city. Rallying thousands of kids to skip school and occupy the streets, Joshua becomes an unlikely leader in Hong Kong and one of China's most notorious dissidents.

  • Director
    • Joe Piscatella
  • Stars
    • Agnes Chow
    • Joshua 'Chi-Fung' Wong
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.3/10
    1.7K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Joe Piscatella
    • Stars
      • Agnes Chow
      • Joshua 'Chi-Fung' Wong
    • 19User reviews
    • 8Critic reviews
    • 72Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 wins & 3 nominations total

    Videos1

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:14
    Official Trailer

    Photos2

    View Poster
    View Poster

    Top cast2

    Edit
    Agnes Chow
    • Self
    Joshua 'Chi-Fung' Wong
    • Self
    • Director
      • Joe Piscatella
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews19

    7.31.7K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    9humphie

    Inspiring!

    Such an amazing piece of film. I never realised what the Hong Kong protests were truly about at the time because of what the media chooses to report on.

    However, this was so eye-opening. The story is phenomenal and so thought provoking and it is documented in such a gripping way.

    I have the utmost respect for the movement and those who shepherded it.

    Fantastic documentary and well worth a watch!
    10philpw99

    Brought tears to my eyes.

    The document is not only about David vs Goliath, Democracy vs Totalitarian, Freedom vs Oppression, but also about human nature, about the real sacrifices of some individuals for their movement.

    Everyone in Hong Kong knows about TianAnMen, June 4th, 1989. and what Chinese government would do for any disobedience. Yet, facing the real grave danger, Hong Kong citizen stood up against the center government at 2014 and 2015, led by a teenage boy. It's truly a remarkable story to tell. This film documented from the beginning to the current situation in roughly chronological order. It explained in personal details about how Joshua and his friends became activists, later leaders of movements. It shows us why in 2014,2015 so many Hong Kong people occupied the street and joined the demonstration, and what is the "umbrella movement". It shows the incredible spirits of not only the leaders, but also the citizens of Hong Kong as a whole. As I watched hundreds of thousands of people waving their lights together, I cannot hold back my tears. Those are truly touching moments for me. I was from China, but I've never imagined peaceful demonstrations could have taken place there again.

    The film is only the beginning. The struggle is continuing every day. Chinese government demonized Joshua and his friends. This film is no doubt banned in China. However, I hope more Chinese people would find this film and watch it, then judge by themselves who's right and who's wrong. This film tells the story from Joshua's angle. It's biased, but since the official condemnation was everywhere, it's very rare to be able to see it from this angle. As the old Chinese saying, "Listening to both sides and you will be enlightened".
    10Super_happy

    Glory To Hong Kong

    I live in China mainland, and I watched this movie in 2021. My roommate during my undergraduate study and I planned to go to Hong Kong to support the freedom movement and were proud of being members.

    The COVID-19 is the biggest fig leaf for Communist bandits. Even if something big happened in Hong Kong, the domestic attention has been diverted. The population decline in the country and the deteriorating political environment have also been obscured by the national pride that the seemingly good isolation policy has brought about effective treatment of the epidemic. The banning of Apple Daily and the prohibition of demonstrations seem to sing hymns to the 100th anniversary of the founding of the party. However, the environment in mainland China and Hong Kong is getting worse. Although we are a little desperate for the current freedom movement, we still hope that the Hong Kong freedom movement will succeed so that some of the sleeping mainlanders will wake up and realize that they are being oppressed by the Communist bandits.

    Thanks to Netflix for the great documentary, and I wish glory to HK.
    6AnTiVincent

    Full of biases

    To understand Joshua, it would be better not only to hear the voice of pro-western voice, but also the voice of pro-government insiders. It's interesting to see this documentary director made this film from the beginning of Joshua's events.
    8asc85

    Not surprised this won an Audience Award at Sundance

    I'd probably give this a 7.5 if I was able to break this down further, but as an American, this is a fascinating story that I knew very little about. It's the true story about a Hong Kong teenager leading the charge against China, and if this wasn't a true story, you would think that whoever made a story up like this was thinking up an implausible fantasy.

    I saw this in August, 2019, and with all the news about what is going on in Hong Kong at this time, it was an extremely topical movie. Joshua Wong is mature far beyond his years, and I can see him winning the Nobel Peace Prize at some point in his life. Remember, I am writing this in August, 2019, so if he gets a Nobel Peace Prize sometime in the future, I obviously didn't know about it at this time of writing.

    More like this

    Last Men in Aleppo
    7.4
    Last Men in Aleppo
    School Life
    7.3
    School Life
    It's Not Yet Dark
    7.6
    It's Not Yet Dark
    Motherland
    7.1
    Motherland
    Machines
    7.3
    Machines
    Plastic China
    7.6
    Plastic China
    Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked The World
    7.8
    Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked The World
    The Good Postman
    7.3
    The Good Postman
    Tokyo Idols
    6.9
    Tokyo Idols
    Winnie
    6.3
    Winnie
    Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom
    8.3
    Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom
    The Workers Cup
    6.8
    The Workers Cup

    Related interests

    Dziga Vertov in Man with a Movie Camera (1929)
    Documentary

    Storyline

    Edit

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • May 26, 2017 (South Korea)
    • Countries of origin
      • China
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Cantonese
    • Also known as
      • Joshua: Thiếu Niên Chống Lại Siêu Cường
    • Filming locations
      • Hong Kong
    • Production companies
      • June Pictures
      • Pandamonium
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 19m(79 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.78 : 1

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.