The Shadow Play

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The Shadow Play

2018

2h 5m

Crime

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

20%

Tomatometer

5 Reviews

33%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Forced out of his job after investigating the death of a Chinese government official, a rookie cop endeavors to discover the truth.

Deborah Young

The Hollywood Reporter

There's more to the art of the thriller than exciting cutting and dizzying camerawork, as evidenced in the misguided police actioner The Shadow Play.

Feb 13, 2019

Full Review

Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

[A] wildly overblown, overcomplicated drama that dissipates tension because it is always doubling back on itself and not achieving much impact with each of its narrative shifts.

Rated: 2/5

Feb 12, 2019

Full Review

Richard Yu

Cinema Escapist

The Shadow Play is not a movie that you kick back and watch on Netflix at the end of a long day; it's a film that requires involvement and thought on the part of the viewer.

Nov 4, 2019

Full Review

Lee Marshall

Screen International

A chaotic plot stumbles its way towards a feeble denouement.

Feb 12, 2019

Full Review

Rhys Handley

One Room With A View

Despite its tendency to fall into incomprehensibility and monotony, this Chinese state-approved schlockfest is a wildly inane, earnestly baffling thrill ride.

Rated: 2/5

Feb 12, 2019

Full Review

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Yuanfeng S

This crime thriller about "money worship and gangster capitalism," as The Guardian puts it, is so underrated. Best pre-covid social commentary about eviction.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/09/24

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Ye Lou

Director

Boran Jing

Yang Jiadong

Jia Song

Lin Hui

Songwen Zhang

Actor

Sichun Ma

Actor

Hao Qin

Actor

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Synopsis

Forced out of his job after investigating the death of a Chinese government official, a rookie cop endeavors to discover the truth.

Director: Ye Lou
Producer: Nai An, Chia-lu Chang, Xiaoping Li
Screenwriter: Feng Mei, Yujie Qiu
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: Chinese
Runtime: 2h 5m