The story of two men, who met as apprentices in the Peking Opera, and stayed friends for over 50 years.
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Title: Farewell My Concubine (1993)
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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 | |
|
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Han Lei | ... | Xiao Si (adult) |
|
|
Di Tong | ... | Zhang the Eunuch |
| Zhi Yin | ... | Douzi as a Teenager | |
|
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Mingwei Ma | ... | Douzi as a Child |
|
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Hailong Zhao | ... | Shitou as a Teenager |
|
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Yang Fei | ... | Shitou as a Child |
| Dan Li | ... | Laizi / Peking Opera schoolboy | |
|
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Yongchao Yang | ... | Laizi as a Child |
|
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Fei Huang | ... | Old Master |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
Storyline
"Farewell, My Concubine" is a movie with two parallel, intertwined stories. It is the story of two performers in the Beijing Opera, stage brothers, and the woman who comes between them. At the same time, it attempts to do no less than squeeze the entire political history of China in the twentieth century into a three-hour time-frame. Written by Michael Kim <leda@imsa.edu>
Taglines:
The passionate story of two lifelong friends and the woman who comes between them.Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
Rated R for language and strong depiction of thematic material | See all certifications »Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
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See more on IMDbPro »
See full technical specs »
Details
Language:
MandarinRelease Date:
15 October 1993 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Farewell My Concubine See more »Edit
Box Office
Gross USA:
$5,216,888Company Credits
Production Co:
Beijing Film Studio, China Film Co-Production Corporation, Maverick Picture Company See more »
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
| (USA) (theatrical)Sound Mix:
DolbyAspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
Edit
Master Yuan: A tear does darken all the world.
Master Yuan: How truly does this befit you. To you... only you are possessed of such charm.
See more »
Composed by Jiping Zhao
© 1993 Varese Sarabande
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider. See more »Goofs
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. See more »Quotes
Master Yuan: A smile ushers in the spring.Master Yuan: A tear does darken all the world.
Master Yuan: How truly does this befit you. To you... only you are possessed of such charm.
See more »
Connections
Referenced in American Dad!: Failure Is Not a Factory-installed Option (2006) See more »Soundtracks
Farewell My Concubine Suite (Part II)Composed by Jiping Zhao
© 1993 Varese Sarabande
See more »
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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.