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Ba wang bie ji
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Ba wang bie ji (1993) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.9/10   7,523 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 5% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Lillian Lee (novel)
Lillian Lee (screenplay)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Farewell My Concubine on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
15 October 1993 (USA) more
Genre:
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. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 2 nominations more
User Comments:
Opening and closing scenes more (61 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

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
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Farewell My Concubine (International: English title) (UK) (USA)
Ba wong bit gei (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
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MPAA:
Rated R for language and strong depiction of thematic material.
Runtime:
171 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Black and White (some scenes) | Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:

Fun Stuff

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. more
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. more
Movie Connections:

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
19 out of 28 people found the following comment useful.
Opening and closing scenes, 17 February 2005
10/10
Author: mac_alain from Switzerland

quote by tedg: "Opening scenes are seductions, promises. They transport one to the world of the story and establish who you as viewer can expect to be. Done right, they are an art to themselves. This film's opening is among the best I've seen, establishing the world of performance: politics as theater and love as both. It lets you know the perspective is centered on a stylized stage and concerns loss, sexually ambiguous brotherhood and betrayal. All in a couple minutes."

Well put. Also noteworthy is that at the end of the movie the opening scene is being mirrored (the two actors on stage being lit by a spot light), the film thus coming full circle. Quite ingenious.

What is good about the movie is that we (Westerners that is) learn a lot about recent Chinese history, which cannot be a bad thing considering the direction in which China is heading.

Oh, and Leslie Cheung's - may he rest in peace - performance is simply outstanding. But then, the acting is first rate all round.

This is one hell of a movie.

And, off topic, I have once again realised that the problem with sub-titled films is that one misses so much/too much of the actual acting, making it really necessary to view movies twice. Still, (a lot) better than viewing dubbed films though.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (61 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Ba wang bie ji (1993)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Xiao si? brandall-7
What was the scene near the end about? What happened to Xiao Si? mjgordon
Strange Question Reemawi
the oscars do it again smithure
Dieyi's death... opinions? anhthu-1
I'm not gay, i'm not bi, but spamandbacon
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