This visually inventive combination of traditional ghost story and comedy proved something of a surprise box-office hit for Ann Hui. Visible Secret sees Qi Shu play June, a woman whose left eye sees ghosts! Of course, rather than avoiding them June seems to encounter them at every turn. The film is an amusing combination of genres of the sort that Hong Kong filmmakers specialise.
Showing as part of the Visible Secret: The 21st Century Films of Ann Hui strand, showcasing the recent work of this inspirational woman filmmaker.
Review
“A polished, mature genre-bending horror from Ann Hui. The film doesn’t go for cheap thrills, and instead focuses on the characters’ obsessions and fantasies. After a decade of disappointments, Hui comes back to what made her so influential: interesting characters, a capable handle of film technique, and an involving pace.”
Ross Chen, LoveHKFilm.com
“Peter meets June, a strangely compelling woman, at a nightclub. Whilst she wants to use him to simply get rid of her boyfriend, he is attracted to her. She becomes even stranger when she admits that she can see ghosts and from that moment Peter too begins to experience the company of spirits. Slowly, he begins to find it difficult to distinguish what is reality and what is fantasy and, even more worrying, what June is really all about.
The award winning ghost story Visible Secret marked the return to filmmaking, and box-office success, for one of Hong Kong’s most important directors, Ann Hui. On the surface the film is a typical Asian ghost story, here involving a young woman, June, whose left eye sees ghosts. However, in the expert hands of a filmmaker of Hui’s stature Visible Secret is effortlessly able to rise above its generic constraints and mix these with charming moments of both comedy and romance.
Indeed, it is the film’s mix of genres, alongside the excellent acting on show, that make Visible Secret so appealing. The central roles of Peter and June are taken by Eason Chan, a popular Hong Kong singer, and Shu Qi, a former soft-core actress, and both turn in impressively nuanced performances. Further, and equally solid, acting support is provided by a team of established Hong Kong character actors, such as the great Anthony Wong, who lend the whole thing an emotional depth one rarely finds within commercial Hong Kong cinema.
Visible Secret is also marked by a striking, eerie atmosphere throughout thanks in a large part to its strikingly memorable visual style. It is therefore not surprising that this side of things was handled by one of Hong Kong’s leading cinematographers, Arthur Wong Ngok-tai. Wong, who worked on Jackie Chan’s Miracles and the legendary films Once upon a Time in China 1 & 2, was rewarded with the award for ‘Best Cinematography’ at the 21st Hong Kong Film Awards for his work on Visible Secret.
All in all, Visible Secret is an excellent example of horror tinged Hong Kong commercial filmmaking and the opportunity to see it on the big screen is one not to be missed.”
Andy Willis, Visible Secrets Hong Kong’s Women Filmmakers co-curator.
Awards
Hong Kong Film Awards ’02 – WINNER
– Best Cinematography (Arthur Wong)
Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards ’02 – WINNER
– Best Director (Ann Hui)