When a narrative work, a movie or a piece of literature, refers to a real crime and investigation, there are many aspects which you have to take into account in order for the story and its themes to work. By far the most important is the approach you use, aesthetically and in terms of storytelling, as it dictates how someone and the horrible acts being portrayed are perceived, which also relates to being respectful towards the actual victims and their relatives. Especially when these acts have been made public, this often becomes quite difficult with media coverage at times being misleading or favoring a certain perspective, which is the case for the gruesome murder of Glory Chau and his wife Moon Siu, who were killed by their youngest son and a friend of his. The crime as well as the investigation and the trail against the two perpetrators already gave inspiration to an episode in the miniseries “Stained” and is now the foundation to actor Cheuk Tin Ho's directorial debut “The Sparring Partner”, which concentrates on all three aforementioned aspects of the case, while also taking a look at the perception of the murder within the media at the time.
Trinity CineAsia presents The Sparring Partner in selected cinemas in the UK
On the outside, Henry (Yeung Wai-lun) is an unassuming, if a little weird man who mostly lives a reclusive life, estranged from the rest of his family, who do not quite know what to do with him. However, there is a darkness in him, which one day is uncovered when he is accused of having murdered his parents, supported by his friend Angus (Mak Pui-tung). After the arrests of the two men, not only the trial against them starts, but also the media interest, as more and more facts rise to the surface, gruesome details about the murder, which involve the two murderers dismembering the corpses, boiling their flesh and disposing their remains all over the city.
While Angus, his mother and their legal representative want nothing more than to receive a merciful plea from the judge, and use every means at their disposal to reach their aim, Henry seems to thrive being the center of attention, clinging to the fame he has been provided with by the media. Over the course of the trail, the jury has to see whether the two, especially Angus, are guilty and fully responsible for their deeds, seeing their way through often contradictory narratives, even more terrible details of the bloody deed and finally a man with seemingly no motive other than the thirst for some kind of attention.
Similar to the judicial proceedings as presented in the plot, the narrative structure of “The Sparring Partner” seems to follow the logic of a trail which goes back and forth, as new evidence is uncovered, new stories come to the surface, and it becomes necessary to go back to past events in order to receive a better image of something quite unimaginably gruesome. As you can imagine, this approach has its god and bad repercussions, as it often creates a tension with new details and new perspectives appearing, while on the other hand it might explain the slow pace of the movie itself, which at 135 minutes feels at time too long for its own good, with the aforementioned interesting moments being far too few to maintain a constant level of interest or involvement in the viewer.
What makes this point even more problematic is the director's talent when it comes to capture mood and presenting a certain view on our obsession with fame and attention, especially in the digital age. For instance, the scenes involving the jury consisting of people from various walks of life, emphasize the variety of reactions to the macabre, from trying to cover your eyes, to experiencing trauma and, finally, being fascinated by the blood and gore. As Henry, actor Yeung Wai-lun gives a chilling performance as a person showing no emotion, who has grown detached from the world around him and who has become almost impossible to decipher as he seemingly hides behind known tropes, such having a history of domestic violence in his family. Interestingly, the more perspectives and details are uncovered, the more difficult it becomes to distinguish between fact and fiction, which is most certainly a great quality in a story such as this.
In conclusion, “The Sparring Partner” is a true crime thriller inspired by a gruesome murder, the following trial and the media coverage this event received. Cheuk Tin Ho takes a look at the problematic idea of fame and notoriety in the digital age, while also telling the story of a truly chilling individual swho remain a cipher to others, thanks to a great performance by Yeung Wai-lun.
Looking forward to it once I start watching it.