The Matrimony (DVD)

Taking cues from Hitchcock's 40s classic Rebecca and set in Bejing in the 1930s, this Chinese-language supernatural drama follows the fateful love triangle of the wealthy and terse Junchu (Leon Lai), his bashful, blushing bride Sansan (Rene Liu), and his vengeful dead fiancée, Manli (Fan Bingbing).

Junchu simply doesn't love Sansan and in fact can barely tolerate her. She loves him deeply (the reasons for which are never explained — he seems far from loveable!) and pines for his affection, doing everything she can to win his approval. Fortunately for Sansan, there may be a way around this seemingly insurmountable problem: taking cues from Zemeckis' What Lies Beneath (2000), the fiancée can still be touched through possession of the wife's virginal body. Sounds like a win/win/win threesome, huh? But of course, things don't go as planned.

The story focuses firmly on the family dynamic between the specter, Junchu, Sansan and Junchu's meddling mom, who lives in the house with her son and his ladies. As the drama unfurls, it seems at first that Manli only wants to watch over the new couple, and to make her husband-to-be happy by letting him know that she still desires him. In so doing, she strikes a deal with Sansan so that she can say goodbye, one last time, between the sheets.

It sounds a bit scary, sexy and kinky but The Matrimony is definitely more atmospheric, stylish and dramatic than anything. The music and cinematography set a mesmerizing mood, but in the end the tale breaks no new barriers.

If you don't mind style over substance and you enjoy perusing the period of the 1930s, The Matrimony is worth a short engagement.

The Matrimony comes to DVD from Tartan's Asia Extreme line on January 15, 2008.

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Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson