Lady in Black (Duo ming jia ren, 1987)

Sun Chung

Hong Kong

88 min, Cantonese (English subtitles)
Cast: Tony Leung Ka Fai (Chan Kin Sang), Brigitte Lin (Chan May Fung), Shih Kien (Grandpa Leung)

Review © 2002 Branislav L. Slantchev

This early Brigitte Lin film is relatively unknown, but I must say that this time this obscurity is not deserved. Despite the frequent slacks in the narrative, the story is emotionally gripping, and, especially near the end, quite disturbing. Lin does some of her best acting in this film, and Tony Leung is a villain to see (which does not happen very often).

Kin (Tony Leung) is a rotten husband. He has been down on his luck forever, and his obsessive desire to become rich the easy way has led to a compulsive gambling problem. He persuades May (Brigitte Lin), his loving and utterly trusting wife, to embezzle HK$ 500,000 by promising that he will return the money shortly, and that this would ensure their future. (What lie he has told her is not clear, but it must have been a doozie.) On the very evening of his son's birthday, he repays HK$ 440,000 in gambling debts and then promptly loses the rest. He confesses to May, and they take a trip to Thailand to borrow money from a supposedly rich uncle. When this fails, Kin becomes abusive and suicidal. On their way back by boat, he gets drunk and threatens to jump into the sea. When May tries to save him, she falls overboard, and Kin lets her drown, knowing well that this will solve the embezzlement problem. Back in Hong Kong, Kin loses no time in putting his father-in-law (Shih Kien) in a retirement home, manipulating his way to a managerial position at the firm, and even dating the daughter of his boss.

May, however, is not dead. Some Vietnamese immigrants save her, and take her to Hong Kong, where she makes the horrifying discovery that her face has suffered third-degree burns and is mangled beyond recognition. In addition, a slash across the neck (from a rope during her fall) has rendered her mute. The rest of the film is about her return, the help of true friends, and the vengeance upon her husband. I must say that as predictable as the story was, the ending was chilling. The fight in the apartment, the stabbings, the explosion, and the final scene were cold, brutal, and emotionally draining. Brigitte's excellent acting carried it (as it did many other scenes which would have been unremarkable melodrama in the hands of lesser actresses), and reminded me of the ending of Hearty Response, where Joey Wang delivered a similarly powerful performance.

There were several annoyances in this film. First, Ming (the kid) was objectionable. For some reason all HK films feature sniveling, loud, and obnoxious children, and this one was no exception. I was actually happy when Kin spanked the little monster on his behind. The Grandpa was also quite annoying, I do not know how Kin could have tolerated him for so long. A retirement home did not seem such a bad idea after the way Grandpa had treated him in front of his wife and son. I also have to credit the film with not making Kin an unredeemable villain. Despite traits that would obviously not endear him to anyone, he has many faces, some of which were quite attractive. He loves his son, and he is genuinely tormented with being a failure and not being able to provide for him. Tony Leung's acting is admirable: we can never tell when his is sincere, and when his lying through his teeth.

The Mega Star VCD is unremarkable, as usual. The colors are washed out, and the picture is seldom stable. The compression is atrocious, and there are many artifacts and pixellation. The Cantonese soundtrack was not too bad, but considering the age of the film, we probably could not expect more. Since there is no DVD of this film, the VCD is the only option for now. The film should not be missed, if only for Brigitte Lin's stunning performance.

February 19, 2002