''Linger'' () is a 2008 Hong Kong romantic drama film directed by

Johnnie To Johnnie To Kei-fung (born 22 April 1955) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter and film producer. Popular in his native Hong Kong, To has also found acclaim overseas. Intensely prolific, To has made films in a variety of genres, though in ...

and starring

Li Bingbing Li Bingbing (; born 27 February 1973) is a Chinese actress and singer who rose to fame with her role in '' Seventeen Years'' (1999) and since then received critical acclaim for her roles in ''A World Without Thieves'' (2004), '' Waiting Alone'' (2 ...

and

Vic Chou Vic Chou () is a Taiwanese actor and singer. He is a member of the Taiwanese boy band F4. Career F4 Chou rose to fame for his role as Hua Ze Lei in the highly popular Taiwan television series ''Meteor Garden''. At the conclusion of the series, ...

Plot

Dong (Vic Chou) was dating Fan, but was infatuated with Yan (Li Bing Bing). Dong suddenly dies in a fatal car accident, and Yan is badly affected. She relies on medication to escape from the reality and her true feelings toward Dong. Three years pass, and Yan takes advice from Dr. Yuen (Roy Cheung) to finally relinquish the medication. She starts seeing Dong repeatedly in her dreams and begins to suspect that her encounter with Dong is real. At the same time, she realizes that she is slowly falling in love with Dong. At last, Yan frees her true self to Dong and he fades away gradually as they both defeat the affliction within their hearts.

Cast

as Foo Yan-Kai *

as Zeng Jing-Dong *

Maggie Shiu Maggie Shiu (born February 27, 1965) is a prominent Hong Kong actress. Career Her career began in 1985 when she joined Hong Kong TVB. As her career developed, she took on variety of roles in TV series and movies. Hong Kong audiences still remember ...

as Miss Chan *

Lam Suet Lam Suet (; born 1964), or Lin Xue, is a Hong Kong film actor. Life and career Lam was born in Tianjin, and came to Hong Kong as a youth in 1979 to receive inheritance money left by his grandfather. Soon after, all the money had been squander ...

as Yan's Father *

Roy Cheung Roy Cheung Yiu-Yeung (; born 20 July 1963 in Hong Kong) is a Hong Kong-based actor, best known on-screen for his roles as Triad gangsters in a number of films. Early life and career As a child, Cheung idolized kung-fu legend Bruce Lee but nev ...

as Dr. Yuen *

Wong You-Nam Wong You Nam (黄又南) is a Hong Kong actor. Filmography *'' Just One Look'' (2002) *''The Mummy, Aged 19'' (2002) *''Anna in Kungfuland'' (2003) *''Star Runner'' (2003) *'' A.V.'' (2005) *'' Hooked on You'' (2007) *'' Linger'' (2008) *''La Ling ...

as Hui Luk-Wo *

You Yong You Yong (born 13 December 1963) is a Chinese actor. He enrolled in the Xi'an Drama School (西安话剧院) in 1979 and joined the Shanghai Theatre Academy Shanghai Theatre Academy () is a public university in Shanghai, People's Republic of ...

as Dong's Father

Production

''Linger'' pairs

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

ese F4 pop star Vic Chou, with

Mainland Chinese Mainland Chinese or Mainlanders are Chinese people who live in or have recently emigrated from mainland China, defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (PRC) except for Hong Kong ( SAR of the PRC), Macau (SAR of the PRC), ...

actress Li Bingbing. The film was shot mostly in

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

, to suit the language abilities of the two leads.

Reception

Box office

''Linger'' was released in Hong Kong on 10 January 2008. On opening weekend, it grossed

HK$ The Hong Kong dollar (, sign: HK$; code: HKD) is the official currency of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is subdivided into 100 cents or 1000 mils. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is the monetary authority of Hong Kong and ...

82,209. At the end of its box office run, it made a total gross of $156,915.

Critical reception

''Linger'' was met with mostly negative reviews from critics who felt that the film was targeted for younger female audiences and fans of the two leads. Some blamed

Ivy Ho Ivy Ho Sai-Hong (, born 15 August 1958) is a Hong Kong screenwriter and film director. Ho's work has received high critical acclaim in Hong Kong. Perry Lam of ''Muse'' magazine wrote, 'As a writer, Ho excels as a miniaturist. Whether they are ...

's screenplay for being poorly developed.A Nutshell Review: Linger (Hu Die Fei / 蝴蝶飞) - Probably Singapore's #1 Movie Review Blog
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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Linger (Film) Hong Kong romantic drama films 2008 films Milkyway Image films Films directed by Johnnie To