{"id":2599,"date":"2026-06-21T07:37:23","date_gmt":"2026-06-21T07:37:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599"},"modified":"2026-06-21T07:37:23","modified_gmt":"2026-06-21T07:37:23","slug":"zhang-songwens-secret-in-the-box-brings-infamous-hong-kong-murder-case-to-shanghai-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599","title":{"rendered":"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n<\/p>\n
\n

\n\t\u201cSecret in the Box,\u201d a period thriller revisiting Hong Kong\u2019s 1974 Happy Valley Box Murder, held its press conference at the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival, with director Frankie Tam Kwong-yuen and lead actor Zhang Songwen discussing the real cold case at the heart of the Golden Goblet Awards main competition entry.<\/p>\n

Read more Lisa Lu, Centenarian Actor and Shanghai Lifetime Achievement Honoree, Reunites With Fans at Screening of Restored \u2018The Arch\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Hong Kong\u2019s Frankie Tam, the film draws on Hong Kong\u2019s first murder case solved entirely through forensic evidence and without eyewitness testimony. The story unfolds against the social atmosphere of 1970s Hong Kong, using the cold case to probe darker currents of human behavior.<\/p>\n

\n\tZhang, delivering his first fully Cantonese-language performance on the big screen, portrays a repressed small-time man caught between competing versions of reality. The actor said that performing in Cantonese was essential to the role\u2019s credibility. \u201cI believe dialect, especially Cantonese, history, it has a thousand year history,\u201d he said. \u201cThis story takes place in Hong Kong. If I were to portray a native Hong Konger with only Mandarin, it would be mismatched. Dialect allows the audience to feel a stronger sense of belief.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more How Duncan Jones Made \u2018Rogue Trooper\u2019 Look Like a Studio Epic on an Indie Budget<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tActor Patrick Tam, appearing alongside Zhang for the first time, described the experience as one he had long anticipated. \u201cI\u2019ve been looking forward to it for a long time,\u201d Tam said. \u201cHe\u2019s really very capable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFrankie Tam said the editing process mirrored the act of criminal investigation, with each cut oriented toward uncovering answers the footage had withheld. Rather than adjudicating guilt, the filmmakers opted to leave the question of truth open to viewers. \u201cThe discussion about this case has never stopped in the past 50 years,\u201d Tam said. \u201cWhen weighing up our creative choices, we could not deliver a verdict, we refused to provide a definitive answer. People often only believe what they wish to believe. Thus, we ultimately adopted a parallel universe approach, allowing the audience to choose which version of the truth they wanted to embrace.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more \u2018Minions & Monsters\u2019 Director Pierre Coffin on His Tribute to Hollywood, the Exhausting Work of Voicing the Yellow Creatures and Crafting Comedy That\u2019s \u2018More Irreverent Than Some of the Competition\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Zhang Songwen makes his Cantonese-language debut in ‘Secret in the Box,’ a Golden Goblet contender at the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1016,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[2208,813,2209],"class_list":["post-2599","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-film","tag-secret-in-the-box","tag-shanghai-international-film-festival","tag-zhang-songwen"],"yoast_head":"\nZhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition - Relocation Observer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition - Relocation Observer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Zhang Songwen makes his Cantonese-language debut in 'Secret in the Box,' a Golden Goblet contender at the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Relocation Observer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-21T07:37:23+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e\"},\"headline\":\"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-21T07:37:23+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599\"},\"wordCount\":410,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/ff048fd8f00de8be46e62770ee564f6d.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"Secret in the Box,\",\"Shanghai International Film Festival,\",\"Zhang Songwen\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Film\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599\",\"name\":\"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition - Relocation Observer\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/ff048fd8f00de8be46e62770ee564f6d.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-21T07:37:23+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/ff048fd8f00de8be46e62770ee564f6d.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/ff048fd8f00de8be46e62770ee564f6d.webp\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":563},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=2599#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Relocation Observer\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition - Relocation Observer","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition - Relocation Observer","og_description":"Zhang Songwen makes his Cantonese-language debut in 'Secret in the Box,' a Golden Goblet contender at the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival.","og_url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599","og_site_name":"Relocation Observer","article_published_time":"2026-06-21T07:37:23+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e"},"headline":"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition","datePublished":"2026-06-21T07:37:23+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599"},"wordCount":410,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/ff048fd8f00de8be46e62770ee564f6d.webp","keywords":["Secret in the Box,","Shanghai International Film Festival,","Zhang Songwen"],"articleSection":["Film"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599","url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599","name":"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition - Relocation Observer","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/ff048fd8f00de8be46e62770ee564f6d.webp","datePublished":"2026-06-21T07:37:23+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/ff048fd8f00de8be46e62770ee564f6d.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/ff048fd8f00de8be46e62770ee564f6d.webp","width":1000,"height":563},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=2599#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Zhang Songwen\u2019s \u2018Secret in the Box\u2019 Brings Infamous Hong Kong Murder Case to Shanghai Competition"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/","name":"Relocation Observer","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/relocationobserver.com"],"url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2599","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2599"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2599\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1016"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}