This interpretation of "Phantom of the Opera" takes place in a once-opulent, now-burnt-out Beijing opera house that was torched because its most famous star, Song Danping (Leslie Cheung), had an affair with an engaged woman (Chien-lien Wu). Song burned to death in the fire, but his body was never recovered. When a struggling acting troupe moves into the theater, thespian Wei Qing (Lei Huang) encounters a hooded specter with revenge on his mind.