Review | She’s Got No Name movie review: Zhang Ziyi anchors part one of Peter Chan’s murder mystery

Peter Chan’s drama set in 1940s Shanghai about a woman jailed for killing her abusive husband is thrilling but morally ambiguous

Reading Time:2 minutes

Zhang Ziyi in a still from She’s Got No Name (category: IIB, Mandarin), directed by Peter Chan. Lei Jiayin and Wang Chuanjun co-star.

Published: 6:24pm, 17 Jul 2025

3.5/5 stars

An unsolved real-life murder in Japanese-occupied Shanghai in 1945 provides the backdrop for a vicious battle of the sexes in She’s Got No Name.

Peter Chan Ho-sun’s captivating period drama proves both morally ambiguous and thematically diffuse – though perhaps not entirely by its filmmakers’ design.

Hong Kong film-goers should be aware that the 96-minute cut showing in the city’s cinemas is very different from the sweeping 150-minute version that premiered out of competition at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.

Unlike that presumably shelved edit, the theatrical one is actually the first half of a two-part film that Chan came up with towards the end of the project, which underwent various format changes and was even considered for release as a TV drama series.

Part one follows Zhang Ziyi’s unnamed killer – referred to by her husband’s family names, Zhan-Zhou, or simply as Mrs Zhan – in the brief period between her arrest for the murder and dismemberment of her husband (Wang Chuanjun) and her dramatic change in fortune right at the end of World War II.

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Peter Chan’s drama set in 1940s Shanghai about a woman jailed for killing her abusive husband is thrilling but morally ambiguous

Peter Chan’s drama set in 1940s Shanghai about a woman jailed for killing her abusive husband is thrilling but morally ambiguous