bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

James Marsh

2/5 stars
Produced under the guidance of China’s Ministry of State Security, Zhang Yimou’s hi-tech spy thriller Scare Out is the first contemporary Chinese film to tackle the issue of national security head-on.
Slickly executed but narratively muddled, it stars Jackson Yee and Zhu Yilong as security agents who, while on the trail of stolen military secrets, learn there is a mole operating within their own unit.
Shooting on location in the newly modernised metropolis of Shenzhen, Zhang seizes the opportunity to flex his virtuoso visual sensibilities.


Incorporating CCTV and airborne drone footage amid a wash of state-of-the-art surveillance gadgetry sure to make even James Bond blush, Zhang presents a shimmering, neon-drenched vision of a hi-tech, almost futuristic China.
The plot is deceptively simple. The formula for an advanced material developed for the construction of a new fighter jet is being leaked to an unidentified – but decidedly Caucasian – foreign power.
Colonel Huang Kai (Zhu) and his team must stop the handoff, but in the wake of the operation, the newly instated Commander Zhao (Song Jia) tells them that they have a leak.
The blame eventually points to Huang and his second-in-command Yan Di (Yee), leading to a series of interrogations, covert ops and cat-and-mouse chases through the city.

While this nifty premise sets up a series of absorbing set pieces, the screenplay, co-written by Zhang and Chen Liang, proves convoluted and confusing, frequently mistaking a lack of information for mystery and intrigue.
The specifics of the leaked intel, for example, are only revealed midway through, while there is a persistent reluctance to discuss why Chinese nationals might choose to betray their own country.
Where similar stories from other parts of the world readily feature disillusioned operatives at odds with the policies of their own government, what little motivation surfaces here is far more banal.
Suspicion falls on various team members primarily due to their past associations with people who have spent time overseas.

The film stops short of claiming that anyone who has worked or studied in the West is subject to suspicion, but only just. Meanwhile, even its most devoted agents are susceptible to the seductive charms of brainwashed beauties like those played by Yang Mi or Liu Shishi.
One need only look to 2021’s Cliff Walkers for evidence of Zhang’s ability to weave a compelling tale of cloak-and-dagger espionage. What Scare Out reveals, conversely, is the director’s inability to deliver convincing modern-day mysteries that elevate and amplify his homeland’s strengths and successes.
Want more articles like this? Follow SCMP Film on Facebook


Scare Out movie review: Zhang Yimou tackles national security in Chinese spy thriller

Double Happiness movie review: Liu Kuan-ting, Jennifer Yu delight in clever wedding comedy

How 2 films from Li Han-hsiang became classics of Hong Kong’s Chinese folk opera cinema

How Anthony Chen’s We Are All Strangers captures the beauty of working-class Singapore

Asian cinema: Chinese films

Jackson Yee as security operative Yan Di in a still from Scare Out (category IIB, Mandarin), directed by Zhang Yimou. Zhu Yilong and Song Jia co-star.

Song Jia in a still from Scare Out.

Zhu Yilong in a still from Scare Out.

Jennifer Yu (left) and Liu Kuan-ting in a still from Double Happiness.

Liu Kuan-ting (left) and Jennifer Yu in a still from Double Happiness (category I; Mandarin, Cantonese), directed by Joseph Hsu.



Joanne Tang (left) in a still from Double Happiness.

Yang Kuei-mei in a still from Double Happiness.

Blades of the Guardians movie review: Wu Jing leads star-studded Chinese martial arts epic

Wu Jing (left) and Nicholas Tse in a still from Blades of the Guardians (category IIB, Mandarin), directed by Yuen Woo-ping. Chen Lijun co-stars.

Jet Li in a still from Blades of the Guardians.

Chen Lijun in a still from Blades of the Guardians.

Panda Plan: The Magical Tribe movie review – Jackie Chan delivers wholesome family fun

Jackie Chan in a still from Panda Plan: The Magical Tribe (category IIA, Mandarin), directed by Derek Hui. Ma Li co-stars. 

Ma Li plays a village chief in Panda Plan: The Magical Tribe.

Jackie Chan in a still from Panda Plan: The Magical Tribe.

Cecilia Cheung: Hong Kong actress, sex scandal victim and Chinese social media star

Cecilia Cheung at the 23rd Hong Kong Film Awards in 2004. The actress’ personal life garnered a lot of attention in the 2000s, with tabloids covering scandals and her high-profile romantic life. Photo: SCMP

Cheung in 1999. Photo: Oliver Tsang

Cheung speaks after receiving the award for best new performer, as veteran actors Liza Wang and Danny Lee look on, at the 19th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2000. Photo: Martin Chan

Cheung and Nicholas Tse in 2001. Photo: Reuters

Cheung in a still from Lost in Time (2003), for which she won best actress at the 23rd Hong Kong Film Awards. Photo: China Star Entertainment Group

Cheung and Tse at the 30th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2011, the year they filed for divorce. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Cheung and Stephen Chow in a still from King of Comedy (1999). Her feature-film debut remains one of her most memorable roles. Photo: The Star Overseas

Cheung and her three sons. Photo: Weibo

Cheung in a photo she posted on her Weibo account in 2023. Photo: Weibo

Lifestyle

Entertainment

Culture

Film & TV

A story of a mole inside a state security team in China, Scare Out is slickly executed but narratively muddled, and far from Zhang’s best


A story of a mole inside a state security team in China, Scare Out is slickly executed but narratively muddled, and far from Zhang’s best.


Chinese language cinema

Asian cinema

Film reviews

Cinema

Fame and celebrity

Chinese culture

Ministry of State Security

What to do in Hong Kong

An assessment or critique of a service, product or creative endeavour.  Film reviews, restaurant reviews, reviews of art exhibitions. (Eg. Crazy Rich Asians: an important film, yes, but a good one?)


Review

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}A story of a mole inside a state security team in China, Scare Out is slickly executed but narratively muddled, and far from Zhang’s best

A story of a mole inside a state security team in China, Scare Out is slickly executed but narratively muddled, and far from Zhang’s best