The Invisible Guest Review: Greg Hsu And Janine Chang Star In Dull China Remake Of Spanish Mystery-Thriller

The Invisible Guest  (NC16)

Starring Greg Hsu, Janine Chang, Kara Hui, Zheng Yin

Directed by Chen Zhuo

This super-twisty China crime thriller is the latest remake of a foreign tale involving diabolical murder that’s tailored for Mainland taste.

The setting is again an unnamed Southeast Asian country — resembling Thailand — in which the alien policemen speak English, the place is full of trees, and amazingly, right over there, is a Chinese cop.

This show is a reboot of the Spanish original, also called The Invisible Guest, which was Spain’s biggest hit in China in 2017.

It could be because it has the ingredients of a preposterously mazy TV drama — murder, greed, lies, betrayal, corruption, abuse of power — all rolled into one sitting. Or maybe it’s just a good yarn. Which, I gotta say, the much-remade Spanish pic and its recent snowbound Korean incarnation, 2022’s Confession, were better in preserving its mystery-movie essence.

Here, this PRC variation over-complicates the story into an investigative face-off between two main characters that looks like a back-and-forth confrontational stage play. With the theme modified into a preachy one about how evil the rich and powerful are. “Do you know who I am?” the filthy bastards keep demanding.

The cop is Zheng Wei (Marry My Dead Body’s Greg Hsu), a greedy officer, who questions and seeks to ransom big bucks off conglomerate-wealthy tai tai Joanna (Janine Chang), prime suspect in the murder of her architect-lover, Ming Hao (Zheng Yin), in a hotel room.

“Your innocence is priceless,” Zheng extorts, offering to manipulate the evidence in her favour for a giant fee.

 FYI, in other versions, the suspect is male and the cop is a female lawyer, but China probably needs the inquisitor to be more aggressive-authoritative. And while Zheng seems too eager-beaver annoying, the calm, secretive Joanna — handled nicely-blankly by Chang — is a good distracting change. So the gender role reversal here works.

Now, POV perspectives showing who the real killer is keep changing like a yoyo. Just know this — a body needs to be found.

The plot twists and turns as the cop piles multiple scenarios onto the sponge-like suspect with other folks added. Including an aggrieved woman, Mrs Hong (Last Suspect’s Kara Hui), and her ailing son searching desperately for her missing husband.    

To reveal more is to spoil more. Suffice to say that this flick is best enjoyed with your brain not over Columbo-ing its proceedings and kicker ending too much.

 “Your story is full of loopholes,” the cop tells the woman. Which is probably how the audience would feel too, despite this pic being tighter than it seems.

Here’s where Korea’s Confession fares better in its adaptation by basically restricting its ambition to being just an absorbingly intricate mystery thriller.

The Invisible Guest, though, requires committee approval.

And dulls itself by trying to do too much as a murder thingy, criminal lesson and a prolonged morality tale. (2.5/5 stars)

Photo: GV Pictures