According to some fans of Brigitte Lin, Lady in Black features some of her best work. While it is true that this film is a fine showcase for Ms. Lin, the rest of the matter floating about her (with a couple of exceptions) makes even the best performance seem almost an exercise in futility. Lady in Black isn't a bad movie per se, but it is a full heaping portion of melodrama. This is the type of movie where thunder cracks and the music booms when something bad is going to happen. It's like a soap opera on steroids.

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.

[review from www.hkfilm.net]