Someone Like Me (2025)

DIRECTOR: WAI CHING TAM DISTRIBUTOR: SPIDERWEB PONDER ENTERTAINMENT

The importance of people living with disabilities being able to experience sexual pleasure is not something often portrayed in cinema, let alone a film from a conservative region like Hong Kong. That is why it is so refreshing to see Someone Like Me, which was filmed and is set in Hong Kong, being released and tackling the subject head on. 

Mui (Fish Liew) is a young woman living with cerebral palsy. She has a carer and is looked after by her mother (Alice Lau), who is understandably very protective of her daughter. Despite her limitations, Mui has a healthy social life, a passion for art and is able to travel around her city quite easily. However, her mother has ordered her to have a hysterectomy. Through one of her friends, Mui learns about a non-for-profit organisation that offers sexual services to those living with a disability. She has her first session with volunteer Ken (Carlos Chan), a gentle and mysterious man who she instantly connects with. The sessions help Mui gain newfound independence, confidence and bodily autonomy, but as she becomes attached to Ken, he distances himself due to a tragic past that initially led him to volunteer for the organisation.  

If there is one word to describe the tone of Someone Like Me, it is tender. The portrayal of Mui and her disability is empathetic, with a lot of care being put into her characterisation that makes the viewer admire her rather than pity her. The sessions she has with Ken feature moving moments of raw human connection that feel incredibly intimate, and not just in a sexual way. As an audience member, you can feel the safety of the space that Mui is in to explore her sexuality. There is always the argument that a character with a disability should be played by an actor with a disability, and while there is truth to that, you cannot ignore the exceptional performance from Liew as Mui. From every micro expression to physical movement, Liew embodies this character fully. If you didn’t have any prior knowledge before watching the film, you would assume she actually does have cerebral palsy. Chan also impresses with a subtle yet effective turn. 

While the themes and performances stand out, the narrative itself can feel a little muddled. As Mui falls for Ken, he becomes aloof due to his own personal baggage. It is wonderful to see Mui find herself, but this growth is undermined by her chasing after Ken. The connection they have is obviously crucial to Mui’s self-acceptance, but it would have been far more satisfying if the story had focused on her own individual journey rather than her seemingly unrequited love for him. Ken’s character could have also benefited from fleshing out. We do get a lot of backstory to help understand why he is this way, but it still doesn’t justify some of the questionable choices he makes. This is driven home by an abrupt ending that will leave the viewer questioning the intention of the film.

Even though Someone Like Me is held back by problematic narrative choices that seem at odds with its themes, it should be applauded for highlighting a very specific subject matter that definitely needs more representation in modern media.  

Someone Like Me will be released in select cinemas across Australia from July 23. Sessions can be found here.