The Ghost Lovers focuses on romance, with a bit of comedy, but too little of the horror that its title promises. Young aristocrat Han is ready to enter into marriage with wealthy Lienhua, which had been
arranged by their late parents in their early childhood. Unfortunately, he arrives too late for the fading
Lienhua, but her servant uses extreme measures to try to secure her mistress' eternal happiness. Former Han family servants attempt to protect Han from the ghosts with often comic results, and nine men attempt to impersonate Han in order to collect his bride's fortune, which does result in a few eerie, though not terrifying, moments.

The movie attempts only mild comic scares, instead offering a melancholy love story of a young
woman doomed to lose her chance of earthly happiness, seeking redemption of her dreams through love.
The romance is undercut by the fact that the couple were essentially strangers to each other during life. Real dedication is shown by servants who forego their own interests in favor of the well being of their longtime masters.

The movie does offer an interesting variation from the common revenge story typically seen in ghost films, creating an elegiac mood which is much closer to the ghost story in Ugetsu than the 1980s Hong Kong horror comedies to come.