The Bride with White Hair 2 (1993)



	The Bride with White Hair 2		Return to Review Archive - B
	\| review \| notes \| availability \|		Brigitte Lin Ching-Hsia
	Year:	1993
	Director:	David Wu Dai-Wai
	Producer:	Raymond Wong Bak-Ming, Ronnie Yu Yan-Tai
	Cast:	Brigitte Lin Ching-Hsia, Leslie Cheung Kwok-Wing, Christy Chung Lai-Tai, Sunny Chan Kam-Hung, Joey Man Yi-Man, Lily Chung Suk-Wai, Elaine Lui Siu-Ling (cameo), Francis Ng Chun-Yu (cameo), Eddy Ko Hung (cameo)
	The Skinny:	Not-bad sequel to the 1993 Ronny Yu masterpiece, The Bride with White Hair 2 is an admittedly underrated, but ultimately flawed piece of HK cinema.
	Review by Calvin McMillin:	When we last left swordsman Cho Yi-Hang (Leslie Cheung) in the original Bride with White Hair, he was meditating on the snowy slopes of Mount Shin Fung. Due to Yi-Hang's mistrust of his lover, Lien Ni-Chang (Brigitte Lin), the poor woman's hair went from black to white and she slipped further into a bloodthirsty rage. Guilt-stricken by his betrayal, Yi-Hang stands ready on the frosty, precipitous mountain in the hopes of plucking a magical flower that may very well hold the key to healing his beloved Ni-Chang. In the meantime, Ni-Chang is content with slaughtering the remaining male members of the prominent clans. At the top of her list is Yi-Hang's nephew, Fung Chun-Kit (Sunny Chan), the last descendant of the once-powerful Wu Tang. Chun-Kit takes a wife named Lyre (Joey Man), but their wedded bliss is short-lived when Ni-Chang pays a visit to the clan. The witch kidnaps Lyre, indoctrinating the newlywed into her cadre of lethal, quasi-lesbian women warriors. Naturally, our substitute hero leads a ragtag group band of do-gooders, including the beautiful Christy Chung as the tomboyish Moon, in an assault on the white witch's inner stronghold. Though the film has its moments, The Bride with White Hair 2 suffers immensely in comparison with its predecessor. The plot contrivance of having Yi-Hang and Ni-Chang separated for the majority of the film is understandable, but the parallel love story that serves as a stand-in leaves something to be desired. Sunny Chan and Joey Maan are simply not that interesting. If only actors like Tony Leung Chiu-Wai and Michelle Reis had been cast as this film's lovers, then perhaps the movie would have measured up to the original. But instead, the sequel just feels like an hour and a half of waiting around for the climax. Brigitte Lin and Leslie Cheung are so riveting in their roles that it is a shame that the duo shares only a few minutes of screen time. Certainly, when the two finally meet, it's a magical moment and a fitting conclusion to the series. But even so, with its half-thought out feminist agenda and meandering script, The Bride with White Hair 2 lets you know that the honeymoon is most certainly over. (Calvin McMillin 2002)
	Notes:	Though David Wu is credited as director, Ronny Yu is rumored to have orchestrated much of the sequel.
	Availability:	DVD (USA) Tai-Seng Region 0 NTSC Widescreen Cantonese, Mandarin and English Language Tracks Dolby Digital Removable English Subtitles Trailers

		image courtesy of Tai-Seng Video Marketing
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