{ "id": "ep9m7mgjwn", "slug": "the-knights-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang", "title": "The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy", "label": "Science fiction and fantasy films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy.science-fiction-and-fantasy-films-of-the-5", "label": "Science fiction and fantasy films of the 2010s", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy.science-fiction-and-fantasy-films-of-the-5" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy.science-fiction-and-fantasy-films-of-the-5.fantasy-films-of-the-2010s", "label": "Fantasy films of the 2010s", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy.science-fiction-and-fantasy-films-of-the-5.fantasy-films-of-the-2010s" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy", "label": "China · 2001 to 2020: Science fiction and fantasy films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy", "path": [ { "id": "geo.chn", "label": "China", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001", "label": "China · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy", "label": "Science fiction and fantasy films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy" } ] } ], "excerpt": "The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang (神探蒲松龄) is a 2019 Chinese fantasy comedy directed by Yan Jia, starring Jackie Chan as writer-demon-hunter Pu Songling; it earned about 152 million yuan and a 3.9 Douban score.", "snippet": "The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang (神探蒲松龄) is a 2019 Chinese fantasy comedy directed by Yan Jia, starring Jackie Chan as writer-demon-hunter Pu Songling; it earned about 152 million yuan and a 3.9 Douban score.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.science-fiction-fantasy.science-fiction-and-fantasy-films-of-the-5.fantasy-films-of-the-2010s", "markdown": "# The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang\n\n**The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang** (Chinese: 神探蒲松龄, also promoted as 神探蒲松龄之兰若仙踪) is a 2019 Chinese fantasy action comedy film directed by Yan Jia (严嘉) and starring [Jackie Chan](https://www.edgepedia.org/jackie-chan) as the [Qing dynasty](https://www.edgepedia.org/qing-dynasty) writer [Pu Songling](https://www.edgepedia.org/pu-songling), reimagined as a demon-hunting detective. It was released in mainland China on 5 February 2019, the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday, and was one of eight films competing in that year's Spring Festival release season.[1](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml) • [2](https://www.yicai.com/news/100114196.html)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Chinese title | 神探蒲松龄 (Shen tan Pu Songling), also 神探蒲松龄之兰若仙踪[1](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml) |\n| Release | Mainland China, 5 February 2019; 108 minutes; Mandarin and Cantonese versions[1](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml) |\n| Director and lead | Yan Jia; Jackie Chan as Pu Songling[1](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml) |\n| Main cast | Ethan Juan (阮经天), Elane Zhong (钟楚曦), Lin Po Hung (林柏宏), Lin Peng[1](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml) |\n| Source material | Adapted from Pu Songling's story collection Liaozhai Zhiyi (Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio)[1](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml) |\n| Mainland box office | About 152 million yuan, the lowest for a Jackie Chan film in mainland China in eight years[3](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2019/0307/35743.shtml) |\n| Douban score | 3.9 after release, with roughly two-thirds of raters giving one or two stars[4](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668) • [5](https://finance.sina.com.cn/roll/2019-02-08/doc-ihrfqzka4273516.shtml) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nThe film casts Pu Songling not as a poor scholar but as a demon hunter empowered by a magical artifact, the yin-yang judge's brush (阴阳判). When monsters break into the human world, he works with a young constable, Yan Fei (林柏宏), to investigate the disappearances of girls in Jinhua town, aided by a band of friendly small demons with names such as Pig-Lion-Tiger, Pipi, Wangyou, and Thousand Hands.[6](https://www.le.com/movie/10040280.html)\n\nThe investigation leads to the demon [Nie Xiaoqian](https://www.edgepedia.org/nie-xiaoqian) (Elane Zhong) and a mirror demon (Lin Peng), and draws in Yan Chixia, a fellow demon hunter played by [Ethan Juan](https://www.edgepedia.org/ethan-juan). The film reworks the classic Liaozhai romance: in this version Ning Caichen is himself a benevolent snake demon who gave Nie Xiaoqian his spirit orb in exchange for her shadow; the blood-stained orb transformed the human girl into a soul-devouring demon, and Pu Songling must decide whether to subdue the doomed couple.[7](https://tv.apple.com/tw/movie/%E7%A5%9E%E6%8E%A2%E8%92%B2%E6%9D%BE%E9%BD%A1/umc.cmc.xhbqzy18t86adon5nzcr2nvv) • [8](https://www.thefilmcatalogue.com/films/knight-of-shadows-walker-between-halfworlds) Critics noted that the film's structure splits between the demon-hunting comedy and this tragic love story, with the romance receiving much of the screen time.[9](https://screenhkblog.wordpress.com/2019/02/11/the-knight-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang-2019-review/)\n\n## Production\n\nThe project began in early 2017 as a novel-based IP that iQiyi Pictures wanted to develop for the [New Year](https://www.edgepedia.org/new-year) season, with the producer A Gan (阿甘), known for the [Monkey King](https://www.edgepedia.org/monkey-king) films, attached. Yan Jia joined when the script was at its fifth draft, and it went through more than twenty revisions. The director later acknowledged that the finished script was mostly about catching demons and had little to do with a detective, and that keeping the word \"detective\" (神探) in the title was his first mistake.[4](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668)\n\nJackie Chan was cast after the investors brought in the distribution partner Yaolai; the director said the role needed an actor whose age and experience could carry the whole film. Shooting lasted two months with an A unit, directed by Yan Jia and centered on Chan, and a B unit handling the remaining drama and comedy scenes; the director later said the two units' styles never fully merged.[4](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668)\n\n**Visual effects.** The film contains more than 1,000 effects shots, and the director admitted in a retrospective interview that their quality was never unified: the demon Wangyou was fully computer-generated while the pig demon and Thousand Hands combined live actors with CGI, and a rough practical model of the thousand-hand boat was never replaced in post-production as planned. He also had digital doubles built for the leads by the team that had created Gollum for The Lord of the Rings, and used CG replacements even in close-ups, which he identified as a key reason audiences found the effects unconvincing.[4](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668)\n\nFilming locations included [Zhangjiajie](https://www.edgepedia.org/zhangjiajie) and Liaozhai City in Zichuan district, Zibo, Shandong, the home region of the historical Pu Songling.[1](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml) The theme song \"Shuangsheng Yan\" (双生焰) was performed by [Jane Zhang](https://www.edgepedia.org/jane-zhang), and a New Year single, \"Yiqi Xiao Chulai\" (一起笑出来), paired Chan with the singer Karry Wang (蔡徐坤).[1](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml) • [10](https://www.jiemian.com/article/2860582.html)\n\n## Release and box office\n\nThe film opened on 5 February 2019 against a crowded holiday slate that included [The Wandering Earth](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-wandering-earth), Crazy Alien, Pegasus, and The New King of Comedy. Pre-release projections were weak, with only 8.1 percent of screens and 11.5 million yuan in presales. Opening-day takings were just over 70 million yuan, falling to about 20 million the next day, and the film's share of screens dropped below 3 percent within four days.[2](https://www.yicai.com/news/100114196.html) • [4](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668) • [5](https://finance.sina.com.cn/roll/2019-02-08/doc-ihrfqzka4273516.shtml)\n\nBy the time it left cinemas the mainland total stood at about 152 million yuan, which industry reports described as Jackie Chan's lowest mainland gross in eight years. The director stated that the film needed 600 million yuan to recoup its cost.[3](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2019/0307/35743.shtml) • [4](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668) Overseas, it was released in Malaysia on the same date in a Cantonese-language cut of 104 minutes, and later screened in markets including Bahrain.[11](https://www.gscmovies.com.my/the-knight-of-shadow/) • [12](https://www.newsofbahrain.com/epaper/26-02-2019/single/page-13.pdf)\n\n## Reception\n\nThe Douban score fell to 3.9, with about 66 percent of raters awarding one or two stars, a result commentators called unexpected for a big-budget Chan vehicle.[4](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668) • [5](https://finance.sina.com.cn/roll/2019-02-08/doc-ihrfqzka4273516.shtml) On Rotten Tomatoes the film held a 31 percent Tomatometer score from two reviews; Singapore critics gave it middling marks, praising Chan's easy charm while faulting a secondary plot that distracted from the main story.[13](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_knight_of_shadows_between_yin_and_yang)\n\nReviewers' criticisms converged on a few points: the title promised a detective story the film did not deliver, the narrative felt fragmented, and heavy CGI replaced the practical stunts associated with Chan. One Chinese commentary argued that the pairing of a martial-arts star with a revered literary figure, and the drastic reworking of the familiar Nie Xiaoqian story, failed to meet audience expectations for a classic adaptation.[14](https://www.chinanews.com/yl/2019/02-15/8755019.shtml) More favorable notices highlighted individual sequences, such as a fight in which Chan's upper and lower body are trapped in separate mirrors, and Elane Zhong's performance as Nie Xiaoqian.[9](https://screenhkblog.wordpress.com/2019/02/11/the-knight-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang-2019-review/) • [15](https://asianfilmstrike.com/2019/05/22/the-knight-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang-2019-review/)\n\n## The director's retrospective\n\nIn April 2019 Yan Jia gave an unusually candid interview about the film's failure, which he framed as a lesson for fellow directors. He listed his own errors: the mismatched title, neglecting the B unit's footage, conceding too many creative decisions, and trusting that visual effects could fix weak props and unfinished shots. His summary advice was that effects can only support a story, and that pre-production planning, budgeting, and shot lists must be settled before filming begins.[4](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668)\n\n## References\n\n1. [神探蒲松龄 详细资料, 1905电影网](https://m.1905.com/m/film/info/2244118.shtml)\n2. [成龙救不了的《神探蒲松龄》，败走春节档后仍想做大IP, 第一财经](https://www.yicai.com/news/100114196.html)\n3. [《神探蒲松龄》下映，票房1.52亿，创成龙电影内地8年最低, 电影界](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2019/0307/35743.shtml)\n4. [《神探蒲松龄》导演严嘉：这部片子是怎么搞砸的？, 澎湃新闻 (GQ报道)](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3166668)\n5. [《神探蒲松龄》：有些心疼大哥, 新浪财经](https://finance.sina.com.cn/roll/2019-02-08/doc-ihrfqzka4273516.shtml)\n6. [神探蒲松龄, 乐视网](https://www.le.com/movie/10040280.html)\n7. [《神探蒲松齡》, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/tw/movie/%E7%A5%9E%E6%8E%A2%E8%92%B2%E6%9D%BE%E9%BD%A1/umc.cmc.xhbqzy18t86adon5nzcr2nvv)\n8. [The Film Catalogue – The Knight of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang](https://www.thefilmcatalogue.com/films/knight-of-shadows-walker-between-halfworlds)\n9. [The Knight Of Shadows: Between Yin And Yang (2019) Review, ScreenHK](https://screenhkblog.wordpress.com/2019/02/11/the-knight-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang-2019-review/)\n10. [为什么成龙卖不动了？, 界面新闻](https://www.jiemian.com/article/2860582.html)\n11. [The Knight of Shadows Between Yin & Yang, GSC Movies](https://www.gscmovies.com.my/the-knight-of-shadow/)\n12. [The Daily Tribune (Bahrain), 26 February 2019](https://www.newsofbahrain.com/epaper/26-02-2019/single/page-13.pdf)\n13. [The Knight of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_knight_of_shadows_between_yin_and_yang)\n14. [新戏遇冷 “成龙演大文豪谁信”为何一语成谶, 中新网/文汇报](https://www.chinanews.com/yl/2019/02-15/8755019.shtml)\n15. [The Knight of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang (2019) review, Asian Film Strike](https://asianfilmstrike.com/2019/05/22/the-knight-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang-2019-review/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Science fiction and fantasy films (individual works) › Science fiction and fantasy films of the 2010s › Fantasy films of the 2010s*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/the-knights-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/the-knights-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/the-knights-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-knights-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/the-knights-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-knights-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/the-knights-of-shadows-between-yin-and-yang. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "The Knights of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang is a 2019 Chinese fantasy comedy directed by Yan Jia, starring Jackie Chan as writer-demon-hunter Pu Songling; it earned about 152 million yuan and a 3.9 Douban score." }