Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Moderate
- eerie
- passionate
- tragic
- mythology movie night
- martial arts double feature
What critics said
The film was broadly recognized for its commercial impact and accomplished visual and action craft, with awards attention for cinematography, music, design, and performances.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Xiao Wei is a fox spirit who takes human form, feeds on hearts, and falls in love with the married Wang Sheng.
The Han-era world combines mythic spirits, demon hunters, stylized action choreography, costume spectacle, and supernatural effects.
Xiao Wei enters Wang Sheng and Pei Rong's household while concealing her fox-spirit nature and predatory needs.
Wang Sheng rescues Xiao Wei from apparent peril and brings her home, unaware that she does not need saving and survives by taking human hearts.
Films like Painted Skin, and why
A Chinese Ghost Story
supernatural romance, Chinese folklore, ornate period fantasy, and tragic emotional stakes
The Storm Riders
stylized East Asian fantasy, heroic action choreography, supernatural creatures, and romantic melodrama
The Four
mythic Chinese setting, demon hunters, elaborate visual design, and tragic fantasy romance
Movie Details
- Director
- Gordon Chan
- Release Date
- 2008-09-25
- Runtime
- 103 min
- Rating
- 6.0 / 10 (173)
Cast
- Donnie Yen
- Zhou Xun
- Chen Kun
- Zhao Wei
- Sun Li
- Qi Yuwu
- Jin Song
- David Liang Kai-Di
- Xiao Cong
- Liu Yan
Common questions
- What is Painted Skin about?
- A lavish Han-dynasty fantasy pits a married couple and demon hunters against a fox spirit whose disguise conceals both predation and forbidden love.
- What is Painted Skin like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Painted Skin as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Painted Skin violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Painted Skin as moderate.
- What did critics think of Painted Skin?
- The film was broadly recognized for its commercial impact and accomplished visual and action craft, with awards attention for cinematography, music, design, and performances.
- Which films are like Painted Skin?
- Films with a similar feel include A Chinese Ghost Story, The Storm Riders, and The Four.
- How long is Painted Skin?
- Painted Skin runs 103 minutes.
