ACMI Presents
A Chinese Ghost Story
Tickets
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When
Fri 24 Apr – Thu 14 May 2026
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Romance, fantasy, martial arts and supernatural horror collide in this breathtaking Hong Kong classic.
Leslie Cheung (Happy Together) stars as Ning Caichen, a travelling tax collector who is forced to take shelter in a haunted temple where he meets and falls in love with Nie Xiaoqian (Joey Wong), a restless ghost whose soul is being held captive by a hideous tree demon. Enlisting the help of a mysterious Taoist monk, the young tax collector must travel to hell to free the girl's spirit and lay it to rest before her imminent marriage to the evil mountain demon, Lord Black.
Curator's note
Employing rapid editing, surreal imagery (including a demon with a giant killer tongue) and spectacular fight sequences, A Chinese Ghost Story is a fine example of the kinetic energy and outlandish sensibility that is a staple of the Hong Kong horror genre. Produced by Tsui Hark and directed by Ching Siu-tung (who was the action director on Shaolin Soccer, 2001), the film spawned two sequels, an animated feature and a host of imitations. Based on a short story from the seminal horror anthology Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio by Pu Songling, the film was also a loose remake of the 1960 Shaw Brothers film The Enchanting Shadow.
Blending every genre under the sun into a film that feels like a permanent sugar rush, this action horror classic was perfecting wire-fu long before Western audiences knew what it was.
Program Passes
See more films in this program for less
Full $48, Concession $42, Member $39
Full $90, Concession $78, Member $72
Spotlight on Hong Kong Horror
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