Ba wang bie ji (1993)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Director:

Kaige Chen

Writers:

Lillian Lee (novel)
Lillian Lee (screenplay)

Release Date:

15 October 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Music | Romance

Tagline:

The passionate story of two lifelong friends and the woman who comes between them.

Plot:

The story of two men, who met as apprentices in the Peking Opera, and stayed friends for over 50 years.

Plot Keywords:

Opera | Peking | Peking Opera | Prostitution | Drug Addict

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Leslie Cheung	...	Cheng Dieyi (segment "Douzi")
Fengyi Zhang	...	Duan Xiaolou (segment "Shitou")
Li Gong	...	Juxian
Qi Lü	...	Master Guan
Da Ying	...	Manager
You Ge	...	Master Yuan
Chun Li	...	Xiao Si (in his teens)
Han Lei	...	Xiao Si (adult)
Di Tong	...	Zhang the Eunuch
Mingwei Ma	...	Douzi as a Child
Yang Fei	...	Shitou as a Child
Zhi Yin	...	Douzi as a Teenager
Hailong Zhao	...	Shitou as a Teenager
Dan Li	...	Laizi / Peking Opera schoolboy
Wenli Jiang	...	Douzi's Mother

Also Known As:

Ba wong bit gei (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
Farewell My Concubine (International: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language and strong depiction of thematic material.

Runtime:

171 min

Country:

China | Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Brazil:14 | Iceland:12 | South Korea:15 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Finland:K-14 | Germany:12 | Peru:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Singapore:PG

Company:

Beijing Film Studio

Trivia:

Jackie Chan was originally offered the role of Duan Xiaolou due to his own childhood experience of training in the Peking Opera. But he turned it down, fearing that the film, which deals with themes of homosexuality, might tarnish his image.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the streets on the eve of the Communist takeover (1948), Dieyi and Xiaolou watch the chaos unfold while seen between them in the background is Master Zhang the Eunuch. The next shot reveals Master Zhang sitting across the street from them.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "American Dad!: Failure Is Not a Factory-installed Option (#2.3)" (2006)

A powerful film (and I do not give that out lightly)

I've seen this movie more times than I can count and I cry every time. I first saw it in the theater in 1993 and I was rooting for it to win Best Foreign Film Oscar, but it lost to the far inferior Belle Epoque (Spain). As to the person who wrote that this film made Cheng Dieyi seem like he was made to be gay because of abuse, I think you need to take another look. To my mind, Dieyi seemed to be infatuated with Shitzou as soon as he got there. However you look at it, this is a film that has great performances all around. I especially loved Leslie Cheung as the adult Cheng Dieyi (requiem eternem Leslie, 1956-2003), not to mention Gong Li. An excellent film, but be forewarned: it's almost three hours long. 10/10