The Secret
Reviewed by YTSL
Up until recently, it would have been absolutely
correct to say that I didn’t think much of the work of Ann Hui. Although
I had got off to a great start in my exploration of the filmography of the
2002 HKIFF’s “Director In Focus” with a viewing of her semi-autobiographical
“Song of the Exile”, far less positive experiences -- including “Ah Kam” and,
especially, “My American Grandson” -- ended up following in its wake.
Indeed, so negative were my reactions to a further taste of what this veteran
auteur had on offer that I had pretty much decided that it might be best for
me to give all of her films a wide berth for a while there.
For more than one reason though, this (re)viewer
found herself unable to resist checking out “July Rhapsody”. After being
blown away by that so very compelling 2002/late 2001 drama, I got to thinking
that it might be worth it after all to take a chance and look some more at
certain of the veteran auteur’s earlier efforts. In which case, I figured,
why not go for THE SECRET? After all, apart from its having come to
be retrospectively regarded as having co-heralded the beginning of the exciting
“New Wave” of Hong Kong movie making (along with Tsui Hark’s “The Butterfly
Murders” -- another film which came out in 1979 -- and Yim Ho’s “The Extras”
that was released in the previous year), Ann Hui’s debut cinematic offering
is a critically lauded effort in a genre that I had not yet seen her tackle
(crime drama).
As can be seen by her having directed episodes of
TVB series entitled CID and ICAC, Ann Hui actually was no stranger to this
type of work. What with one of the former small screen efforts (the
made in 1977 “Murder”) having been based on a real life incident, THE SECRET
also turned out to not be her first attempt at basing a fictional offering
on an actual homicide case. As such, she had good reason to feel comfortable
with, plus prove to be an expert at, manipulating the thematic material of
a suspenseful murder mystery; not least one that may surprise some in terms
of its containing as many feminine touches behind the scenes -- e.g., this
movie’s scriptwriter is Joyce Chan, its composer is Violet Lam, its credited
producer being Audrey Li, and the production house (Unique Films) that put
it out having been formed by this offering’s lead actress, Sylvia Chang,
along with Selina Chow -- as well as on screen as it does.
For the first twenty minutes or so, there appears to be an overwhelming amount
of people for the viewer(s) of THE SECRET to get acquainted with and keep
track of. To some extent, I might have felt this as a result of my
lack of familiarity with many of the sophisticatedly structured work’s cast
(Something that was exacerbated by those I do know looking so much younger
than I’m used to seeing them!). However, I would not put it past Ann
Hui and co. to have arranged for there to be what amounted to a quick parade
of individuals through the early part of this psychological cum criminal
puzzler in order to provide the audience with a fair number of possible suspects
plus red herrings to dot the landscape of that which was made especially
atmospheric by its having been set in Lung Fu Shan/Western District.
Additionally, I can see that this apparent plethora of personnel is an all
together logical by-product of at least three of this effort’s main characters
being the type of Hong Kongers who still lived with relatives and were part
of inter-connected social webs.
For example, the person (named Lin Ming and portrayed
by Sylvia Chang) who decided to embark on her own investigation of a double
murder -- that the police (among whom is an officer played by Kenneth Tsang)
wanted to pin on a madman (essayed by Norman Tsui), despite the protestations
of his mother (played by Leung Suk Hing) -- was a neighbor plus friend of
the family of the female who was said to have been killed -- but not raped,
despite initial suspicions re this other crime also having taken place --
plus a nurse in the same hospital in which the male victim had been a medico.
Then there’s it being so that -- at least according to her family, even if
not his mother -- Li Yuen (who is portrayed by Angie Chiu, and referred to
by Lin Ming referred as Yuen Chea Chea/Older Sister Yuen) was on her way
to becoming the future wife of Dr. Yuen Tsi Cho (who Alex Man played) prior
to the pair’s premature plus violent demise.
As THE SECRET starts to very smoothly plus cleverly reveal itself though,
this (re)viewer got to feeling that, for the most part, it would be enough
to focus her attention on: Lin Ming; Li Yuen (whose character is one of those
that get fleshed out by way of a multitude of flashbacks that occur throughout
the film); Li Yuen’s rheumatoid and blind -- but still very aware plus sensitive
re her surroundings -- grandmother (who may have been essayed by Lai Cheuk
Cheuk); Dr. Yuen (AKA Ah Cho); and a Macau resident -- but Thai native --
known to be a TB patient of his called Mary Gabriel as well as Mei Siu Gei
(played by Lee Hoi Sook). Still, this is not to say that all of the
other characters who are seen in it (including a Macanese Mamasan, a Catholic
nun, a couple of her Buddhist counterparts together with a doctor that George
Lam made a cameo appearance as) are entirely superfluous to this involving
offering’s main act and/or story. Indeed, part of the genius of this
extremely well crafted work is how so many people plus so much detail got
interwoven into a plot whose chief attribute(s) may well be its being multi-stranded
and -layered yet never unwittingly confusing.
My rating for this film: 8.