Spirit of the times

The concept of tradition may seem contradictory to modern Hong Kong filmmaking, yet some of the most noteworthy hits of late have a basis in classical Chinese literature.

The ghost stories by 17th-century author Pu Songling, under the umbrella title Strange Tales From a Chinese Studio, have proven popular since the earliest days of Chinese motion pictures.

The near cult status of the chapter Nie Xiaoqian, taken from the name of the tale's beautiful but tragic ghost heroine, is affirmed by the Hong Kong Film Archives' upcoming series of six adaptations dating from 1960 to 1997. The films provide a window on the changes in Hong Kong society and local cinema - or, rather, the vision of two of the city's best known filmmakers, Li Han-hsiang and Tsui Hark.

Li is responsible for The Enchanting Shadow (1960) and Tsui has directed or produced four Nie-related features, including A Chinese Ghost Story (1987), its two sequels and an animated version in 1997. Li and Tsui have different approaches, reflecting their generations and individual sensibilities.

In The Enchanting Shadow, the story is of supreme importance, with Nie a lost spirit controlled by evil forces who must sacrifice everything for the young scholar with whom she falls in love.

Two decades on, the emphasis is on action and special effects. Not that The Enchanting Shadow doesn't possess atmospheric qualities. Li, a supreme stylist, breaks new ground in his attention to period detail and colour (this was one of Shaw Brothers' earliest colour films). But these elements are used to further the story rather than as an end in themselves (as is all too often the case in Tsui's efforts, which reached their nadir in the incoherent plot of A Chinese Ghost Story II in 1990).

The shifting nature of Nie also reflects the shifting status of women in Hong Kong society. In The Enchanting Shadow, shot during the 1950s, Nie is quite the traditional maiden, with understated modesty even when seducing a scholar.