Albert Lee Movies
- 2008
Ghosts haunt a block of Hong Kong flats as one guy becomes aware of their presence in this horror comedy from director David Lee. Nam (Steven Cheung) is a high school student whose friends have been dying at an alarming rate, as three having taken their own lives within a few months. But the suicides have also led Nam to a remarkable discovery -- he can see and hear the spirits of the dead, and he now finds himself talking with his late buddies on a regular basis. While Chee (Yee Tong), a beautiful flight attending living in the same apartment building, has been occupying Nam's thoughts lately, the growing number of ghosts that are wandering the hallways has become a powerful distraction, and when both Chee and Nam's brother Tung (Yu Gu) start acting in a very peculiar manner, he becomes convinced something out of the supernaturally ordinary is going on in his hometown. Ngok Nam Shi Kin (aka Yes, I Can See Dead People) received its North American premiere as a special midnight attraction at the 2009 Seattle International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 2008
Sent away to rural Taiwan after entering into a forbidden affair with the daughter of his father's most dangerous rival, the musically gifted son of a powerful Triad boss experiences a newfound sense of balance in life upon entering into an apprenticeship with a Zen drumming troupe. Sid Kwan is a reckless musician who threatens to rock the entire underworld when he makes love to the beautiful Carmen. Carmen is the daughter of Stephen Ma, perhaps the most notorious Triad leader in the Hong Kong underworld. Should Carmen's father find out about the clandestine affair, the streets would likely be ablaze with gunfire, and Sid would certainly be the first to fall. Hoping that his son's life will be spared if he is out of sight, Sid's father sends the restless boy to lie low in rural Taiwan. Shortly after his arrival, Sid stumbles across a Zen drumming troupe who live and play together deep in the forest. Their passion and athleticism instantly mesmerizing to the entranced newcomer, Sid immediately asks if he might become a part of the unique community. While Sid's apprenticeship is at first straining, the clarity that he experiences after ingratiating himself to the community helps him make sense of the chaos that nearly consumed him back in Hong Kong and discover the peace that comes from owning up to his father's dark legacy. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jaycee Chan, Tony Leung Kar-Fai, (more)
Invisible Target director Benny Chan draws inspiration from the 2004 English-language thriller Cellular for this tense tale of a self-centered debt-collector who risks his life to rescue a desperate mother and her young daughter. Bob (Louis Koo) is a single father with a dead-end job as a debt collector. Essentially an easygoing, helpful guy, Bob tries in earnest to perform well in his new position while dealing attempting to clean up his act so his sister won't move to China with his son. He's making progress too, so when he receives a frantic phone call from a woman named Grace who claims she's been kidnapped, he reports the disturbing call to the local police. Although the detective on duty dismisses the call as a prank, Bob's instincts tell him differently and he quickly makes the decision to investigate. Realizing that he's the only personal capable of saving Grace and her daughter from a painful demise, Bob prepares to risk everything - including his own family - in order to save two people he's never met, and may not even exist. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Louis Koo, Barbie Hsu, (more)
A hotheaded cop seeks repentance for a mistake from the past by rescuing the kidnapped daughter of a high profile lawyer. Police sergeant Tong (Nicholas Tse) is dressing down his crew following a botched stakeout when he spots the fugitive attempting a daring escape. Hastily speeding to catch the fleeing triad boss, Tong inadvertently kills one of lawyer Ann Gao (Zhang Jingchu)'s twin daughters. Ann is the lawyer preparing to try the boss' case, and she's resisting pressure to fix the trial. When Ann's other daughter is kidnapped by volatile hit man Hung (Nich Cheung), Tong vows to control his impulsive temper long enough to rescue the frightened young girl. But in order to save Ann's daughter Tong will need some serious help from the same colleagues he once so callously abused. Getting the girl back will be a serious gamble, but as Tong and Hung engage one another in a treacherous game of cat and mouse, the trial looms closer and the stakes get higher. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 2007
Loosely inspired by author Ye Mi's novel Velvet, Chinese New Wave director Jiang Wen's follow-up to Devils on the Doorstep drifts between Yunnan's Shangri-la and the Gobi Desert to follow four narratives exploring the roles that culture and revolution have played in Chinese history. In the first tale, a deranged young widow (Zhou Yun) slips on a pair of colorful shoes that have been embroidered to resemble fish, and abandons her only son (Jaycee Chan) to disappear into a nearby river. Set on a university campus during the Cultural Revolution, the second episode details the tragic relationship between professors Liang (Anthony Wong), Tang (Jiang Wen), and attractive doctor Lin (Joan Chen) that eventually leads the village where the mad widow resides. After exploring the magical texture of velvet in the third tale, Wen connects each of the stories by traveling back in time to the Gobi Desert. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
