In February 1944, American pilot Donald W. Kerr took part in a mission to bomb Kai Tak airport in Hong Kong, which the Japanese had converted into a military air base after occupying the city, formerly under British rule, during World War II.

During the raid, Kerr's fighter plane was struck by enemy fire, forcing him to bail out by parachute into Japanese-controlled territory. For the next 27 days, he was sheltered and moved to safety by members of the Dongjiang (East River) Column, a guerrilla force led by the Communist Party of China.

Inspired by real-life stories and historical archives, Against All Odds, the latest directorial work by Hong Kong filmmaker Lau Ho-leung, released in domestic theaters on Sept 3, condenses the rescue operation into a tense 48-hour race against time.

The movie begins with James, an American pilot who is shot down and captured by Japanese forces and publicly tortured in a cage at a local bowling alley as a form of humiliation. By chance, the bowling alley's owner, a covert Party operative originally planning to assassinate a Japanese officer, joins forces with four Chinese guerrillas to rescue James and escort him to a military base in Guilin, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

Actor Han Geng, who plays the operative, tells China Daily that his character, Huanshao (Smiley), is a complex and tragic figure. As the sole survivor of a failed mission in Shanghai, where he witnessed more than 20 fellow Party operatives sacrifice their lives, the role forced him to conceal his grief behind a perpetual, fabricated smile.

"As an actor, one of the most interesting parts is that you can always gain new knowledge by stepping into someone else's shoes and experiencing their life," says Han.

For the star, who grew up in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, preparing for the film was an educational experience, diving into the history of the Hong Kong-Kowloon Independent Brigade of the Dongjiang Column, a guerrilla force founded by locals in 1940 to fight against Japanese invaders.