THOU SHALT NOT SWEAR, with Lau Ching-wan, Chan Ming-chun, Michael Chow Man-kin, Eva Lai Yin-shan and K. K. Cheung. Directed by Chin Sing-wai. Category II. Showing on the Newport Circuit.
THOU shalt not think this is a filler for the post-holiday slot.
After a summer of swordplay and kung fu, this low-budget ghost thriller, which does not even have a guaranteed box office-filling star, comes as a welcome alternative and one that marks the return of a genre popular in the mid-1980s (most notably with Till Death Do We Part ).
And it is surprisingly well made for what it cost - a low-risk horror film that should easily recoup from theatrical and video release. What is more, Thou Shalt Not Swear has been released during a timely season - in fact the only season - of the Chineseghost festival.
The film is about seven neighbourhood kids - six girls and one boy - who swear to meet every year during the Chinese Halloween. Those who break the vow will pay with their lives.
Years later, as grown-ups, they one by one die in mysterious circumstances until there are only two left: Chan Ming-chun and Eva Lai.