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Review

Cheung and Gong are radiant, as always, as ill-fated lovers in this overly tragic jumble. It's the tale of Yu Zhongliang (Cheung) and Pang Ruyi (Gong), who were raised together as youths in Ruyi's ancestral home where the orphaned Zhongliang lives as a virtual servant to his sister's husband (Ruyi's brother). Zhongliang eventually winds up in Shanghai where he becomes the favorite of a local crime boss and acts as a gigolo/con man. Then he's instructed to return to the Pang household and put the con on Ruyi and thus is born a setup for tragedy. The film is lushly photographed by Christopher Doyle and features fine performances from its brooding leads, but sadly its arcane plot is peppered with a host of incomprehensible moments that muddle the film's message and will leave the viewer baffled. (Mandarin with English subtitles)