Fantasia Fest 2026: Unidentified Murder Review

Fantasia Fest 2026: Unidentified Murder Review

Directed by: Kwok Ka-Hei and Jack Lee Chun-Kit
Written by: Kwok Ka-Hei, Jack Lee Chun-Kit, Devon Choi Ka-Hang, Ho Siu-Hong, and Yung Ka-Ching

Starring:
Ling Man Lung – Mark
Renci Yeung – Man
Ronald Lam – Kit
Peter Chan – Kim
Kenny Wong – Stardust Master
Alan Luk – Officer Fuk
Wong Wai Ching Desmond – Ho
Wong Chun Kit – P.A. Wing

Image Credit: Fantasia IFF

Running Time: 86 minutes
Not Rated

I’m a big proponent of films that can subvert your expectations and throw curveballs that you don’t see coming. There’s always that risk of course that pulling the rug out of an audience will go wrong, but when handled properly there’s nary a cinematic experience more rewarding.

Unidentified Murder is a film built around doing just such a thing — not once, not twice, but multiple times. Kwok Ka-Hei and Jack Lee Chun-Kit’s Hong Kong mystery-comedy, which had its North American premiere at Fantasia International Film Festival, blends Coen Brothers-level crime comedy with a Rashomon-esque switch in perspectives to keep the audiences on their toes. Add in a little sci-fi veneer and some swipes at influencer culture, and you have a recipe for a good time.

Unidentified Murder centers on Mark (Ling Man Lung) and Kit (Ronald Lam), two friend with a notorious past. 25 years ago, the two were playing in the woods with their friend Ho (Wong Wai Ching Desmond). Ho vanished, and Mark and Kit claimed that he was abducted by aliens, a story that they’ve held to ever since.

Now grown up, Mark is dating Man (Renci Yeung), an influencer who makes videos out of pranking her boyfriend. For her latest prank, centered on the 25th anniversary of the incident, she hires an actor (Peter Chan) named Kim to portray Ho so she can film it hidden camera style in the woods where it all went down.

But things take a sudden, shocking turn when the prank goes wrong. And soon after, a call from an anonymous blackmailer demands money to keep the secret. As things turn deeper toward the absurd with every new reveal, it’s up to the trio to figure out how to navigate the situation and come out without ending up in jail, or even worse.

Far more comedy than thriller, Unidentified Murder lives and dies on the strengths of its reveals. The screenplay cleverly plays with time and perspective, showing a sequence of events and then rolling back to give us new information to put things in context. In that sense, it’s sort of a Russian nesting doll of story information wherein we progressively get more context as time goes on. That notion works well for the first rug pull, which essentially gives the game away to the point that from there forward, we’re waiting to see what we’re missing from each scene and how it will fit inside the greater story.

A lot of the humor comes in our knuckleheadedness of the characters and how they set up traps — mostly unknowing — for each other (or even themselves) to fall right into. The general ineptitude is endearing in most cases; Man’s ill-thought-out prank sets the stage for everything that comes after, while Kim’s commitment to his character results in some disastrous (in a good way) moments.

And yet, at its core, these are generally likeable characters. That’s a credit to the cast, who channel some authentic moments between them while still being able to play out the pratfalls, silliness, and dark comedy. Chan in particular is a comedic delight here, providing most of the broad belly laughs, while the trio of Ling, Yeung, and Lam have an undeniable chemistry and sense of timing.

The risk with a film like this is that eventually, the reveals will stop being surprising and start feeling tedious. Late in the film, there are a couple of moments that feel like this. One of the central third act reveals is a particular letdown, considering how much time was invested in it.

But it’s hard to be too angry at that when the cast is clearly having fun to the point of it being infectious. The decidedly unpretentious tone helps it go down easy, and there are enough twists and turns that I can forgive one of them falling flat. There’s just enough substance hidden in the core about the nature of friendship and the critical eye toward the cottage industry of conspiracy nuts industry and influencer culture to keep this from seeming too slight, though it’s the laughs that most are going to remember and not the message. And that’s perfectly fine, because in the end that seems to be the intent.

Fantasia International Film Festival takes place in Montreal, Quebec from July 16th through August 2nd.

7.5

The final score: review Good

The 411

Unidentified Murder finds plenty of laughter to mine in its clever script and the efforts of a talented cast. The constant rug pulls serve to enhance rather than detract from the story, and even when they threaten to be too much there's a solid foundation to keep it moving smoothly. A few light shots at online cultures hit home, but it's in the humor and dash of heart that allow it to shine.