Cheng Kang’s intriguing storytelling techniques such as suspense and multiple flashbacks, combined with Hung Suk-wan’s auteuristic mise-en-sc ne, have transformed a conventional plot into a pearl of the melodrama. The film starts in suspense with a car rushing off the cliff. The driver Xiangnan (Bai Yun) seeks death with Lingzi (Ouyang Shafei) whereas Lingzi’s husband, Yushi (Wu Jingping), is waiting for his wife’s return. Xiangnan and Lingzi have happy childhood memories in a northern city but are forced to separate due to class differences. During the Second Sino- Japanese War, Lingzi bumps into Xiangnan at his art exhibition in Chungking but he’s about to have a Western wedding with his cousin in Hong Kong. When Lingzi arrives in Hong Kong, she is forced to work as a songstress in the dancehall. She gets married with the poor writer Yushi, but is soon reunited with Xiangnan. Things get more and more complicated when Yushi’s sister falls in love with Xiangnan! While the triple triangle loves are convoluted enough, the women are always in the know as opposed to the ultimately unwitting husband!

6/5

(Tue)

2:00pm

Cinema, Hong Kong Film Archive

15/6*

(Sun)

2:30pm

Cinema, Hong Kong Film Archive

*Post-screening talk with Chen Chih-ting and Mary Wong Shuk-han