The film Love Lies will be screened on Friday, November 15, as part of the “Making Waves - Navigators of Hong Kong Cinema” unit of Beijing Film Panorama at the 14th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF). This romantic comedy film, directed by the emerging director Miu-Kei Ho and starring Sandra Ng and Cheung Tin-fu, tells the story of an evenly matched “love” confrontation between a well-organized professional love scam gang and the billionaire Veronica Yu, exploring current emotional topics from a new perspective.

Love Lies tells the story of Veronica Yu, an educated female doctor who was in an emotionally stunted state after the death of her husband. She signed up for a dating app on a whim and accidentally met a foreign engineer with whom she spent a lot of time talking. Unexpectedly, behind the considerate and gentle “middle-aged man” image, there was a “love” trap meticulously designed for her by a professional team. A two-way “love” battle is about to start... The tones are fresh and cool, with a Hong Kong texture. With a beautiful visual atmosphere, the film depicts the professional team’s gradual conquest of the wealthy woman, as well as the contradictions and complexities in women’s emotional worlds.

　　Post-screening at BJIFF

The film made its mainland screen debut at the 14th BJIFF. Director Miu-Kei Ho, producers Chan Hing Ka and Chun Siu Chun, and lead actress Sandra Ng were all present and responded to fans’ questions with witty remarks, earning high praise. Sandra Ng made another breakthrough in her acting skills in the film. She refreshed many viewers’ inherent impressions with her accurate and delicate portrayal of the successful woman Veronica Yu. Her exquisite and accurate emotional interpretation was touching. After the screening, a viewer asked her, smiling, if she had the confidence to compete with She’s Got No Name for the Best Actress award. Sandra Ng cleverly responded to the question: “There are many excellent films and actors every year. Anyway, have you seen She’s Got No Name? Even I haven’t seen it!”

　　

　　Post-screening at BJIFF

Movie fans also left their comments on social media: “Love and gambling are actually the same thing. The more you invest, the more you can’t get out of it. The screenwriter becomes the author of the character setting and scam quotes, and the art designer’s props are used to create illusions, as if to indicate that the film itself has been weaving illusions. This illusion, however, is surprisingly consistent with the illusion of love. Sometimes we know it is a lie, but we still want to believe it happened because, once believed, it is real.”“(The film) blurs the line between the pig butchering scam and love through a dual narrative of the male and female protagonists, where truth and lies serve as a contrast to the need for money and love. Sandra Ng, the winner of the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actress, contributed another memorable performance moment. Because of Sandra Ng, the whole viewing process was full of laughter. After the screening, they also talked about a lot of interesting things about the filming. It should be the most suitable Hong Kong film to be introduced in this year’s BJIFF. You can look forward to it.”

Since its release in Hong Kong, China, Love Lies has performed exceptionally well at the box office. It has topped the daily box office list for ten days in a row, making it the box office champion of the Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong, China. At the same time, the film gained a good reputation, with netizens praising its well-designed plot, excellent performances by the actors, and meticulous production. Many viewers said that after watching the film, they realized perspectives on love, such as “in love, you should focus on the present and enjoy the process”, which captured the essence of emotions. Professional film critics also praised the film, believing that it delicately depicts the struggles and thoughts of women caught up in an emotional whirlpool in the unique and novel setting of a love scam. It is believed that once the film is released, its intense emotional portrayal will prompt the audience to reconsider questions such as “What is love?”.

　　Still from Love Lies

The protagonists in the story are hovering on the edge of the false and the real. Joe Lee, played by Cheung Tin-fu, is a young man who is forced into a relationship by a scammer team and has no idea how to fall in love. Sandra Ng is engulfed in emotional self-doubt. Faced with the sweet trap set by the scammer team, she gradually falls into the whirlpool of love. Some of the BJIFF audience also had their own opinions on this: “Some people don’t like it. They think it is a film about telecom fraud, a realistic crime film. It’s too romantic for a psychological drama. But, aside from crime and action films, I think that using comedy to tell sad stories is a very important feature of Hong Kong films. Being cheated and still believing that it is love. It’s not a fantasy story made up by the filmmakers, but rather a true story that has been happening. Why they are unwilling to admit they have been cheated is the question this film explores.” At the end of the post-screening exchange at the BJIFF, the creators sent their blessings to all the fans present, which was particularly in line with the theme of the film: Even if what happens on the screen when the lights go on in the theater is a lie, the happiness in the process is real, and we hope everyone still believes in love.

　　Still from Love Lies

The film Love Lies will be released nationwide on November 15. Let us learn the true meaning of love together during this special love.