M. Butterfly (1993)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

David Cronenberg

Writers (WGA):

David Henry Hwang (play)
David Henry Hwang (screenplay)

Release Date:

1 October 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

In 1960s China, French diplomat Rene Gallimard falls in love with an opera singer, Song Liling - but Song is not at all who Gallimard thinks.

Plot Keywords:

Opera | China | 1960s | Cultural Revolution | Betrayal

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Jeremy Irons	...	René Gallimard
John Lone	...	Song Liling
Barbara Sukowa	...	Jeanne Gallimard
Ian Richardson	...	Ambassador Toulon
Annabel Leventon	...	Frau Baden
Shizuko Hoshi	...	Comrade Chin
Richard McMillan	...	Embassy Colleague
Vernon Dobtcheff	...	Agent Etancelin
David Hemblen	...	Intelligence Officer #1
Damir Andrei	...	Intelligence Officer #2
Antony Parr	...	Intelligence Officer #3
Margaret Ma	...	Song's Maid
Tristram Jellinek	...	Defense attorney
Philip McGough	...	Prosecution attorney
David Neal	...	Judge

MPAA:

Rated R for sexuality and a brief bloody sequence.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Iceland:12 | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | Singapore:R(A) | South Korea:18 | Australia:M | Finland:K-14 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Budapest, Hungary

Company:

Geffen Pictures

Trivia:

The Chinese opera being performed by Song near the beginning is called "Gui Fei Zui Jiu", aka "The Drunken Concubine", aka "Yang Gui Fei Gets Tipsy".

Quotes:

Ambassador Toulon: You said the Americans would succeed in Vietnam. You were kidding, right?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The Directors: The Films of David Cronenberg (#1.10)" (1999)

a great work

this film is compelling and haunting...have seen it only once, but its message of passion burned itself upon my memory for all time. that is my definition of a great film. would love to own a copy on DVD. I always look for it at stores but never have found even a VHS version. I have also been searching for a copy of Damage also starring Jeremy Irons...haven't found that one either. Why are the most artistic films, the ones that really have something to say, the last to make it to the after-market release of the film?? I have noticed that Jeremy Irons tends to portray emotionally crippled characters...it certainly works for him in this film!