The movie tells the story of May (Brigitte Lin), a woman stuck in a loveless marriage with a compulsive gambler, Kin (Tony Leung Ka-Fai), for the sake of their child, Ming (Gregory Lee). On a trip to Thailand to try and get some money from relatives to cover Kin's gambling debts, May falls off of a boat and is presumed to be dead. This leaves Kin free to start romancing the boss' daughter and work his way up the corporate ladder. However, May didn't die from the accident, and soon heads back to Hong Kong to try and put her life back together by any means necessary.

Lady in Black starts out well enough, with a nice slow burn to get things going. But during the second act, after May's accident, things take a dramatic downturn. All of the actors seemed to have forgotten how to act, and instead scream or cry most of their lines. The biggest culprit is Gregory Lee. I know it's not very nice to pick on a kid, but goddamn, is he horrible. Even by Hong Kong child actor standards, Lee's performance (if you can call it that) will have you ready to throw a brick into that nice shiny new HDTV.

However, things rebound nicely during the finale. Both Brigitte and Tony look like they were actually allowed to act, and turn out some very strong work. In particular, the final confrontation is gripping and tense. That's something which sadly the rest of Lady in Black can measure up to, but if you're a fan of Brigitte Lin, this is worth checking out. Just keep some earplugs or the mute button handy for whenever lil' Greg pokes his melon on the screen.

Shaw Brother's veteran filmmaker Sun Chung directed his last picture for the studio in 1985 (The Master Strikes Back) before they shut down feature film production and his move to Cinema City resulted in this 1987 revenge drama. Sun had no qualms about exploring the bleaker side of life in movies and Lady In Black is a showcase worth admiring if you fancy watching characters descend into pure hell. The fact that this was also Law Gam-Fai first feature screenplay adds onto that and he would be responsible for writing some of the harshest Category III efforts of the 90s such as Love To Kill and Dr. Lamb.

It's very obvious that coming from such a well equipped studio like Shaw's, Sun Chung wasn't about to let the film look absolutely ordinary. While modern day 80s nowadays doesn't lend itself to exhilarating visuals, Chung does give the frame a good workout in terms of crane work and lightning.

The setup for the revenge plot is actually an involving one or rather the ultimate choices that come with it. It's a family situation that turns out to be built on a foundation of shame and deceit and in the middle is the devoted wife whose devotion basically leads her nowhere. A true and punishing life lesson learned when she's left to drown. The criminal, in this case the husband, is definitely none to root for and Law Gam-Fai's script really lays out perfectly to all the non-rational of the character of Sang, both mentally and what he's prepared to do physically. Mix all this up with the honed visual sense in our director, in particular in how he uses slow-motion which is borderline eerie in its execution, and Lady In Black delivers, mostly in consistent passages but there are a few niggles to talk about.

It is truly the performers that carry the production in a large way and it's when losing Brigitte Lin for way too long that a sense of slow pace sets in. For what isn't much of a complicated scenario, Sun tends to wrongfully stretch out the 90 minutes and what's again really obvious when Lin finally is reintroduced, is how much emotional impact she has on the film. The choices her character has to face, whether to sacrifice all in life to get her revenge is believable. Her entering the picture again also makes the movie hit a terrific stride and comparisons to Phantom Of The Opera becomes unavoidable although I doubt that story seriously jolted the viewers this much. Lin's scarring really leaves one with us as well and further proof of her expressiveness as an actress comes due to the fact that she doesn't have any dialogue for a critical section of the film. Combine the chilling, almost horror-like atmosphere and this really becomes top notch, bleak material for a while.

But it is what takes place outside the main characters that never quite gels and it's due to Sun Chung's rather awful handling of melodrama. True, with Lin, the emotions feel genuine but it's of the hysterical kind and the supporting cast are directed way too over the top to make this thoroughly compelling drama. Even in the relationship between Shek Kin's character and the son of the family, Ming, warmth prevents to shine through, due to their various physical contacts, which is a strange critique to give.

Tony Leung Kar-Fai, an actor who only seems to get better and better with every movie nowadays, does have many traits to handle and his established skill is crucial to make the character stand out, even somewhat. The vile, deceitful and desperate character that is who clearly has come to a point where nothing but fame and fortune matters anymore. And with Sun Chung's directorial choices, it's a rather disturbing portrait to follow at times. Chung also keeps the balance perfectly clear, even in the violent but memorable finale. I.e., no sympathy should ever exists for Sang. One just hope he doesn't drag down too many people with him during his dive into darkness...

Make no mistake about it, Sun Chung's Lady In Black promises early on to take us to hell and back and much hard hitting violence within an at times beautiful frame makes at least the main character arcs worthwhile to sit through. The always game Brigitte Lin logs a fine and sympathetic performance that few in all honesty I think knows about. Sun Chung's only directed twice after this (one being City War, with Ti Lung and Chow Yun-Fat) and it's a roster of bleak work that's gone largely unnoticed until recent years. But with the Shaw Brother's catalogue becoming available and these budget releases, one doesn't have to look as hard anymore thankfully.