Rouge (1987)

A deserved multiple award winner, this is really a great film. Starring Leslie Cheung as Chen and the late, wonderful Anita Mui as Fleur, this movie is about forbidden love (Fleur was a prostitute). They have a suicide pact, but only Fleur carries it out. Over fifty years later she is back trying to find him with the help of two local news reporters (they are not covering the story, she seeks their help). At first they're scared of her since she is a ghost, but then agree to let her stay with them and help her. What makes this a major cut above many films of its ilk is Anita Mui. She is absolutely beguiling in this role, looking just beautiful. Her expressions throughout the film are varied and perfect. It is an absorbing film, sentimental but never maudlin. This film makes me miss Anita Mui more, as we lost her way too young to cancer. This is one of her best roles and the reason I'm giving it 10 stars is due to its consistency of mood, the aforementioned performance of Anita Mui and the great direction of Stanley Kwan. Don't miss it.

This is one of the best films I've seen. As far as ghost stories go, this is one of the scariest for me. It's not scary by way Stir of Echoes or Gothika, but it will give you chills like nothing before. Sure, angry ghosts are scary, but a heartbroken ghost is scarier. She could appear to your left right now and ask for your help. Isn't THAT scary?If you love ghost stories, love stories, Hong Kong and Chinese music, this movie has all that. It was a pleasant surprise to find a film that told a familiar story so beautifully it becomes unique. Leslie Cheung and Anita Mui were perfect for their roles. Watch out for the scene where Leslie wears Peking Opera makeup. Fans of "Farewell, My Concubine" will surely love the foreshadowing of Leslie's future internationally-acclaimed performance.

Sometimes films just take your breath away. This is one of them, for me. I first saw it when it aired on Channel 4 in the UK in the early 90's and then recently managed to pick up a copy on video. After all these years, it's lost none of the impact it had on me when I first saw it."Rouge" tells the story of two doomed lovers in the early 1930's. He is a high class gentleman, Twelfth Master Chan Chen-Pang, the heir to three successful medicine stores. She is Fleur, a famous courtesan. His parents disapprove of both his choice of lover and also his passion for the Cantonese opera. They are horrified when he decides to give up the shopkeeping business in favour of becoming an actor and immediately order him to return to the family. So he and Fleur take their own lives, vowing to meet up in the afterlife and be together forever. Fifty years later, her ghost returns to the world of the living, still searching for her beloved Twelfth Master.On the surface, it's a traditional Chinese romantic ghost story but there's far more lurking underneath. Essentially "Rouge" is a lament on a bygone age of pre-Westernised China, a yearning for a return to the old values, traditions and passions that are now lost beneath the neon lights and soulless rush of modern-day Hong Kong. It's also a lonesome mediation on the nature of trust and the complexity of human relationships with a tragic punchline and a strong sense of alienation running throughout.Deeply melancholy, loaded with ravishingly beautiful imagery and haunting performances from the two gifted leads (Anita Mui and the ever-mesmerising Lesley Cheung), "Rouge" is an unforgettable, understated and utterly unique piece of filmmaking. A very strange, subtle blend of genres that floats around the mind long after the end credits have finished rolling. 9 out of 10.

He promised to go with her, but she found no him. Fifty years had passed. She still kept searching. Perhaps no way did her world go complete without him. But did he keep his promise ??? That's the story. Hongkong film industry reached the peak in late 80s, and this movie is one of the best produced that time. In it we can find very good actors and director, very beautiful cinematography, and a thoughtful story of course. Silent and slow but not boring. A must see.