Jin Yan: The Rudolph Valentino of Shanghai: The Rudolph Valentino of Shanghai (with DVD of the Peach Girl) - Softcover

"Dr. Meyer insightfully places Jin Yan's films within the film industry in which they were made and the socio-political context of their times. Invaluable for English-speaking readers." --Peter Lehman, director, Center for Film, Media and Popular Culture,

Released in 1979, Ann Hui's 'The Secret' was among a string of works by a group of young filmmakers, which heralded the launch of "The Hong Kong New Wave". Based on a sensational murder case in 1970, Hui's bleak, psychological thriller unweaves a web of mysteries behind the seemingly motiveless slaughter of a young couple by a senseless madman. A nurse (Sylvia Cheng), who is the childhood friend of the murdered woman and who is also a secret admirer of the man, unwittingly discovers that the former may still be alive and that the murder actually involved a passionate triangular affair. Hui employs a multi-point-of-view structure and razor-sharp editing to culminate the film in an ending that is guaranteed to shock the audience out of their seats. A landmark film in both Hui's career and the Hong Kong cinema, 'The Secret' also marked the birth of a young talent, who went on to become one of the most acclaimed and important filmmakers in Hong Kong. Shu Kei conducts a meticulous analysis of Hui's insights into sexuality, subjectivity and the meaning of truth.

He discusses the film's stylised camerawork and carefully choreographed mise-en-scene, showing them comparable to the best works of Polanski and Roeg. He also recounts the early career of Hui in television while mapping out a detailed background of the Hong Kong New Wave.