Yan Su

Adapted from Guy de Maupassant's "Boule de Suif", this satire-cum-thriller transposes its backdrop to wartime China. On a bus crossing a checkpoint, a pretty girl coveted by a Japanese officer sacrifices herself to aid the patriotic cause against the enemy.

A wedding musician fails to wed his own love: Little Trumpet is raring to marry his childhood sweetheart, but a series of setbacks has prevented them from getting their way. Criticism against social formalities becomes all the more forceful with the clever use of contrast and irony, not to mention the realist and comedic touch a la Zhu Shilin. Of special mention is the famous teahouse scene where dynamic, melodic camerawork creates a hilarity that continues to amaze to this day. A genuine masterpiece with every single detail, down to the minor props, forming an integral part of a whole. Today, young couples are struggling nonetheless to get a roof over their heads, a testimony to the fact that poverty still reigns beneath the facade of harmony and stability after all these years.

As China falls into hyperinflation following the end of the war, people fought tooth and nail to get their hands on the only reliable currencies in the world: gold and American dollars. This is a story that shows how seven bars and two thousand US dollars bring together an interesting mix of characters: an opportunistic manager, a materialistic courtesan, a con artist posing as a commissioner of the Treasury, a white-collar worker who will do anything for a promotion, a man who specialises in conning women, a father who marries off his daughter for money and a sorcerer who fakes his magic. In this dog-eat-dog world, the only truth is that everyone is lying for his own gain. Playing the courtesan who longs to be part of high society, Li Lihua steals the film with a feisty performance opposite the amusing Yan Jun, whose con artist character has a tendency to flirt with lyrics from Peking operas.

Flower Street is a place where people from the jungle live, and the street is a place where people from the marketplace gather. Zhaogou and his wife, Bai Lanhua, make a living as singers in the House of Delight and have a daughter, Daping. Daping enrolls in school, and her best friend Lian Bao is also helped by Zhaogou to learn the art, and later moves on to work as an apprentice in a factory. During the war, Zhaoxu's family fled, but his grandmother insisted on staying behind. Zhaogou is separated from his wife and daughter on the road; Daping wanders around with his mother and sells songs, and after a few twists and turns, he and his mother are able to return to Flower Street.

Based on 'The Insulted and the Injured' by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

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