good back-story, and good acting

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Sigh. Donnie Yen, Wei Zhao, a killer concept - how could this not be great!Well, unfortunately, "they" found a way.There's honestly little point in giving a summary of the plot here, as it may make whoever reads this want to see it, only to turn it off a long time before the end credits roll.So, how best to describe this film honestly?Well, perhaps mumbled, confused, dull, with poor action sequences, humour that won't amuse and zero chemistry between those supposedly loving and trying to seduce one another would be a pretty good start.Seriously, films like this make me feel so sorry for all those aspiring writers, actors and film-makers who can't get the funds to put a low-budget project together, when such dismal trash is clearly tossing cash into the wind.I needn't have to advise anyone reading this to avoid it, but shall do all the same:AVOID IT.

Ever since his early "Dragon Inn" days, Donnie Yen has had a commanding screen presence. In his more recent movies, he always plays himself - strong, violent, a believer in rough justice - and he always delivers great action scenes. He's the only reason to watch this film to the end. He makes the most of his screen time, which regrettably is not anywhere near as much as one wishes.The film is chugging along great when about halfway through, it just abruptly runs out of plot. In order to fill the remaining time, the actors suddenly start moving and talking incredibly slowly. I thought there was something wrong with my computer. It has to be seen to be believed. Donnie Yen is the only one immune to this strange infection, but sadly, he is not permitted to carry the film by himself.

Tagline: Revoking the days of A Chinese Ghost Story… Review by Neo: The ultra screen beauty of the early 1990s was undeniably the ambassador of ghost/romance movies, Joey Wong. Its been a long time coming since those comedy/spooky/ghostly/romance/action genre. The good news is that The Painted Skin's ability to revoke those kind of unique feelings, while the end product may not be the same. That's not to say The Painted Skin is not a good movie, as the current reviewer thoroughly enjoyed the ride, but in the end, it just feels a little too forgettable. Carried by the consistently good actress in Zhou Xun (who have now developed a reputation for being head and shoulder above her given material) who attempts to follow the foot step of Joey Wong and adding to the pot of fire is an equally impressive return to form by Vicky Xiao Wei. Perhaps the downside is easily Alloy Chen (Playboy Cops) who appears to be miscasted in a role born to be played by say, Liu Ye (Connected). Adding to the mix is the overacting of Donnie Yen (who is intentionally funny by overacting, rather than in Seven Swords where his limited emotional range became more laughable than all the jokes added up together in that flick.In many ways, Painted Skin feels like The Promise, it allows the audience to totally disband their beliefs and escape into another world, namely a "dream". While Neo was one of the few people who actually liked the uneven and largely acclaimed "disappointment", The Promise. The Painted Skin fares even between and sometimes it is just fun to live within a dream. Perhaps fans of action cinema would have expected more, as one would expect in a Donnie Yen's flick. In fact, this isn't a Donnie Yen film where he grins, kicks ass and ultimately kick more asses, but rather, at its core, a love story, a light hearted genre mixture of action, ghosts and comedy. Quite simply revoking those days when movies like A Chinese Ghost Story are still in existence. Then again, when a movie leaves you thinking about Joey Wong, it really can't be half bad.There is no doubt that Mainland starlet, Zhou Xun is a shinning star. Ever since Neo first associated with Zhou Xun in Fruit Chan's Hollywood Hong Kong, he knew that there was something special and her display in Peter Chan's Perhaps Love enhanced her reputation to mainstream Hong Kong cinema. Although Zhou Xun does not possess the sweetest voice, her vocal is distinctive, easily recognizable and really something of an acquired taste. Her looks are pretty, but pale in-comparsion to compatriot Fan Bing Bing. Still her acting, her screen chemistry, her sheer screen presence makes Zhou Xun easily one of the better actress in Hong Kong cinema now. Here, she performs to perfection, the cross between humanity and evil, and her ability to allow the audience to sympathesis with her character is not something that everyone can achieve. Cliché and cheesy as the finale may seem to be, the current reviewer is leaning towards liking it.If there is one aspect about reviewing movies that Neo enjoys is the part where he gets to talk about performances. I fondly remember way back in 2005, Koma provided a moment for two acting queens in Karena Lam and Angelica Lee and likewise, Painted Skins goes head to head with Zhou Xun and Zhao Wei. The Shaolin Soccer girl (Zhao Wei) performs more than admirably and certainly a triumphant return to form. In arguably a much more difficult role than her counterpart, she still manages to engage the audience and maintain some believability within the dream.Donnie Yen has come a long way since those Shanghai Affairs and Legend of the Wolf days, but it is not surprising that while his screen presence has increased dramatically, the same cannot be said about his acting. Luckily, The Painted Skin does not require Yen to act and the result is one of Yen's better comedic display in recent years. Remember the time when Yen tried to emotes in Seven Swords, it was unintentionally laughable, here, Yen deliberately overacts and the effect is the audience laughing with him, rather than at him. As for Alloy Chen, it just goes without saying that he still have a few notches behind the girls. Perhaps his good looks overshadowed his already non-existent performance. While it is adequate, there are not sparks and his chemistry with Zhao Wei comes up lacking. Fearless's Betty Sun makes her second film and passes with flying colours. Her lively performance, brighten up the film in all corners and somehow manages to romance with the "non-romance-able" Donnie Yen.All in all, Painted Skin ends up being good cinema, due largely to the performances of the two leading actresses. There is no doubt that Skin gains even more sympathy points for alluding to those early 90s genre movies. So what's wrong with Painted Skin, maybe you can argue about the lack of action, lack of a storyline or even the believability factor. However, Neo seems to think otherwise, as Painted Skin feels like a dream. Not entirely a successful movie, but certainly any movie that reminds the current reviewer of the sheer beauty of Joey Wong, really can't be too bad… (Neo 2009) I rate it 7.5/10www.thehkneo.com

Make no mistake about it – this is a love story of many shades, with the ultimate glorification of "love conquers all". Cynics may sneer but even if the sincerity in "Painted skin" does not win conviction, it garners sympathy.To introduce this movie as the latest adaptation from the famous Chinese literature ghost story could be misleading. The movie in fact goes to great length of AVOIDING being scary. As director Gordon Chan ("A-1 headline" (2004)) explains in an interview: "this is a story of romance where six characters speak for themselves about love". The movie does indeed adapt the ghost story, but only as an anchor for the love stories. Also, the movie talks about "monsters" and not "ghosts", in order to get through the movie censor authority of the Mainland of China, to whom ghost is an absolute no-no but monsters are tolerated. While this hardly seems to matter to the audience, it means a potential market of hundreds of millions to the producers.The plot is simple, even when it involves a double-triangle (or whatever geometrical form that is a more appropriate description) of entangled love relationships. At the centre of it all is a girl Xiaowei rescued from a battle scene by General Wang Chen and taken into his household, and becoming the darling to everybody. Xiaowei, a monster that feed on raw human hearts, falls in love with Wang and plots to usurp the place of his wife Peirong who soon suspects something. Into the scenes blunders Pang Yong, derelict loner and ex-general (Wang's old boss), as well as an old rival for Peirong, who now seeks his help to check out her fears. A chance encounter brings to Pang's side a young woman Xia Bin "Summer Ice", a "ghost-buster" hot on the trail of Xiaowei. Finally, to complete the double triangle is another monster (one that reminds you of Toad in X-men) hopelessly in love with Xiaowei but only able to please her by bringing freshly snatched human hearts (sometime served, sliced, in a bento box).The various shades of emotions and passions between these three men and women (loosely defined) is explored deftly by director Chan, parading different levels of infatuation, obsession, devotion – from subtle to fiery, from deviously possessive to nobly selfless. The movie is so delightfully unpretentious that it's almost nostalgic. In the end, love conquers all – a little naïve, a bit idealistic, seen it, been there – and yet so refreshingly simple that it's not difficult to empathize. And this is not the least because of the good acting.ZHOU Xun, irresistible to the audience just as Xiaowei is irresistible to almost everyone in the story, pulls off the final conversion of a ruthless monster consumed in selfish passion to someone that finally realizes what true love really means with a degree of conviction that very few others can achieve. CHEN Kun (who played another love triangle with ZHOU in "The little Chinese seamstress", with LIU Ye as the third) look more like a scholar than a general as Weng, but that hardly matters because he is winning as the faithful husband who chooses to die with his wife that he is tricked into believing to be the monster. Vicky ZHOU Wei was told by director Chan to "grow up" and stop relying on her "cuteness" did just that in this movie, playing the most sympathy-earning roll as a wife who makes the ultimate, unspeakable sacrifice for love. Donny YEN fulfills his role in his favourite persona – a loner hero with a temper of fire and a heart of gold. Betty SUN (in "Fearless" with Jet Li) provides good support as the tom-boyish monster-hunter who keeps stumbling when fighting with hate but finds herself (and her power) when driven by love.For those not satisfied with just the love story, there is Donny Yen's martial art action (and I happen to be one who thinks that he is the best since Bruce Lee). For cinematic effects, a frequent moviegoer will be able to catch glimpses of familiarity – the wall-and-roof chase scene in "Crouching tiger", the tongue shooting act in "X-man", the now-you-see-it-now-you-don't monster in "Predators", just to name a few.