Bright Stars, Big City: Chinese Cinema’s First Golden Era, 1922–1937
December 2–22, 2005

The first Chinese film was made in 1905. In celebration of the centenary of a great film tradition, this exhibition presents a number of silent and early sound classics from China’s first golden era, many of them for the first time in the United States. Shanghai in the early decades of the twentieth century was a metropolis alive with art and culture—the Hollywood of the East, no less. Beyond showcasing the urban landscape that supplied the cinema with its backdrop as well as its energy, this exhibition’s special focus is on the constellation of movie stars that commanded the screens, featuring, for instance, Ruan Lingyu, the most luminous and tragic silent star of the golden era, and Li Lili, a popular athletic beauty with a winsome sexuality. Both were often paired with Jin Yan and Gao Zhanfei, the two Chinese "Valentinos." These and other stars lit up the screen with their charismatic allure and memorable performances, in films directed with inventive originality by directors like Cai Chusheng, Shi Dongshan, and Sun Yu, providing early Chinese cinema tremendous popularity at home. The exhibition also presents several important early sound experiments, culminating in Street Angel, a classic film renowned for Zhou Xuan’s songs and for its stylistic tribute to the "shadowplay" aesthetic of the earliest Chinese cinema. All films except Street Angel are silent, with piano accompaniment by Donald Sosin.

Organized by Jytte Jensen, Curator, Department of Film and Media; Zhang Zhen, Assistant Professor in Cinema Studies, New York University; and William Phuan, Program Associate, Asian CineVision, with the gracious collaboration of the China Film Archive, Beijing. We are indebted to the Pordenone Catalogues 1995/1997 for valuable information.

The exhibition is supported in part by The 42nd Street Fund with additional funding from The International Council and The Contemporary Arts Council of The Museum of Modern Art.

Ye meigui (Wild Rose). 1932. China. Directed by Sun Yu. With Wang Renmei, Jin Yan. Played by the spunky Wang, Wild Rose is discovered in the countryside by a spoiled rich kid who fancies himself a painter (Wang’s real life love, Jin). She follows him to Shanghai, where he tries to make her into a modern girl. Fascinating views of Shanghai’s varied social strata are drawn in this dramatic tale comprising years of sociopolitical change and character transformations. One of Sun's most innovative films. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 99 min. With rare excerpts from the earliest surviving Chinese films: Dingjun shan (Ding Jun Mountain). 1905. Camera by Liu Zhonglun; and Gu’er jiuzuji (Orphan Rescues His Grandfather). 1923. Directed by Zhang Shichuan. Approx. 8 min.
Friday, December 2, 7:45 (introduced by a delegation from the China Film Archive). T1; Monday, December 19, 8:00. T2

Tianming (Daybreak). 1933. China. Directed by Sun Yu. With Li Lili, Gao Zhanfei, Yuan Congmei. Perhaps more than any other director working at that time, Sun consistently sought to portray the working class affected by feudalism and imperialism. In Daybreak, Li plays a villager forced into prostitution in Shanghai, while her lover (Gao) joins the revolutionaries. After she helps him flee the authorities, she is sentenced to death by a firing squad, a scene of devastating impact. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 116 min.
Saturday, December 3, 2:00. T1; Wednesday, December 14, 8:00. T2

Xixiang ji (Dream of the West Chamber). 1927. China. Direct-ed by Hou Yao. With Li Dandan, Lin Chuchu, Ge Cijiang. Many early Chinese films were based on traditional operas, a popular source of entertainment. Dream of the West Chamber, the earliest surviving example, follows the chance meeting and chimerical romance between a court lady and a poor scholar. Shot on location in the southern Jiangnan region, Dream has been noted for its special effects and epic scale. Chinese and French intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 41 min.
Laogong zhi aiqing (Labourer’s Love). 1922. China. Directed by Zhang Shichuan. With Zheng Zhegu, Yu Ying, Zheng Zhengqiu. Labourer’s Love is the earliest complete Chinese film known to exist, a slapstick comedy that boasts two pioneers of Chinese cinema: director Zhang Shichuan and screenwriter Zheng Zhengqiu ("the father of Chinese film"), who also performs in the film. The story is simple—a fruit seller tries to win over a poor doctor’s daughter—but the bold visuals and narrative style indicate maturing film techniques. Chinese and English intertitles. 25 min.
Saturday, December 3, 4:30. T1; Sunday, December 18, 3:30. T2

Xin nüxing (New Woman). 1935. China. Directed by Cai Chusheng. With Ruan Lingyu, Zheng Junli, Wang Naidong. Ruan portrays a modern woman forced to sell her body to save her sick daughter’s life. Incensed by the unflattering portrayal of a woman, the press attacked the film upon its release. Shortly after, embattled by personal problems and hounded by the press, Ruan committed suicide at age twenty-five. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 104 min.
Saturday, December 3, 7:00. T1; Wednesday, December 21, 6:00. T2

Hongxia (Red Heroine). 1929. China. Directed by Yao Shiquan (Lincoln Yao). With Fan Xuepeng (Van Shih Bong), Zhu Shaoquan. A prime example of the terrifically popular swordplay genre (wuxia pian), often based on published novels or serials, and an early cinema export. The queen of action, Fan, stars alongside a half-monkey hero, a decadent villain with a harem, and plenty of magical effects. Chinese and English intertitles. 110 min.
Sunday, December 4, 2:00. T1; Saturday, December 17, 8:00. T2

Yuguang qu (Song of the Fishermen). 1934. China. Directed by Cai Chusheng. With Wang Renmei, Luo Peng, Yuan Congmei. The first Chinese film to win an international award (Moscow Film Festival, 1935) and a huge domestic hit, running for eighty-four record-breaking days in Shanghai. The tale, shot mainly in the Zhejiang region, draws great emotional effect from Wang’s realistic acting style. A lyrical drama that conveys nature’s beauty, its destructive power, and the resilience of the people. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation, with synchronized music and effects. 57 min.
Sunday, December 4, 4:30. T1; Thursday, December 15, 6:00. T2

Fenhongse de meng (Pink Dream). 1932. Directed by Cai Chusheng. With Gao Zhanfei, Tan Ying, Xue Lingxian. Set in Shanghai, Pink Dream follows a male writer torn between two women. One represents domestic life and family obligations, the other embodies the erotic lure of nighttime Shanghai. Although Cai’s film implicitly criticizes the sins of the city, its aesthetics so vividly embrace the modern look and lifestyle that it was accused of being influenced by Hollywood. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 100 min.
Monday, December 5, 6:00. T1; Sunday, December 11, 4:30. T2

Huoshan qingxue (Blood of Love). 1932. China. Directed by Sun Yu. With Li Lili, Zheng Junli, Tan Ying. Director Sun, the "poet of the silver screen," teams up for the first time with Li, his favorite leading lady (his Dietrich to her Sternberg). Perhaps the most fantastic of Sun’s films, Blood of Love combines melodrama and romance in a revenge tale that culminates in an outrageous action sequence set in the mouth of an erupting volcano. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 118 min.
Monday, December 5, 8:15. T1; Sunday, December 18, 5:15. T2

Lian’ai yu yiwu (Love and Duty). 1931. China. Directed by Bu Wancang. With Ruan Lingyu, Jin Yan, Chen Yanyan. A passionate family drama about a woman who pays dearly for following her heart instead of the feudal tradition of arranged marriages. Ruan is astounding in multiple roles: as a student, then a mother, and finally an old woman, as well as as her own daughter. The intense beauty of the Shanghai street scenes bears witness to director Bu’s training as a cameraman in the early 1920s. Chinese and English intertitles. Print courtesy the Chinese Taipei Film Archive. 180 min.
Wednesday, December 7, 6:30. T1; Saturday, December 17, 3:30. T2

Malu tianshi (Street Angel). 1937. China. Directed by Yuan Muzhi. With Zhao Dan, Zhou Xuan. Upon arriving in Shanghai, two sisters are coerced into a corrupt environment in the poorest part of the city. A neighbor tries to help them escape from the dregs of society. This classic, one of the first to showcase the talented and popular Zhao, as well as "Golden Voice" Zhou, is inventively directed by Yuan, echoing the great "shadowplay" tradition. It was praised by contemporary reviewers for its vivid portrayal of the urban underclass in 1930s China. In Mandarin, English subtitles. 95 min.
Thursday, December 8, 6:00; Friday, December 16, 8:45. T2

Tiyu huanghou (Queen of Sports). 1934. China. Directed by Sun Yu. With Li Lili, Zhang Yi. One of the silent era’s biggest stars, Li (who died just this past summer) starred in over a dozen films, contributing greatly to their rapturous reception in China. Queen of Sports, one of the most popular, is about an athletic village girl (seen through most of the film in shorts!) who comes to Shanghai to discover the true nature of competition and love. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 83 min.
Thursday, December 8, 8:00; Saturday, December 17, 1:30. T2

Yinhan shuangxing (Two Stars). 1931. China. Directed by Shi Dongshan. With Jin Yan, Zi Luolan. A fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the Shanghai movie scene, with parallels to the true-life story of popular actress Ruan Lingyu. A simple girl is plucked from the countryside by a famous actor, who romances her and makes her a star, with unhappy results. The film’s score is lost, but the engagement of Zi, an opera star (credited as Violet Wong), to play the lead opposite Jin was a sensation. Chinese and English intertitles. 83 min.
Friday, December 9, 7:15. T1; Thursday, December 15, 8:00. T2

Guilai (Coming Home). 1934. China. Directed by Zhu Shilin. With Ruan Lingyu, Gao Chanfei, M. Nikitina. An effective psychological drama about a husband who, believing his wife dead, returns to Shanghai with a European wife from abroad. The narrative concentrates on the relationship between the two wives as the husband struggles to make a choice. One of the few surviving films starring Ruan with a happy ending. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 93 min.
Friday, December 9, 8:30; Wednesday, December 14, 6:00. T2

Shennü (The Goddess). 1934. China. Directed by Wu Yonggang. With Ruan Lingyu, Zhang Zhizhi, Li Keng. The Goddess (a term that in Chinese refers to a prostitute) is an intense, poignant drama that extols maternal greatness while questioning the claim to moral authority. Ruan, the "Chinese Garbo," in arguably her most memorable role, beautifully captures the resilience and dignity of a mother struggling to care for her son even as she is driven to murder. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 77 min.
Saturday, December 10, 4:30; Monday, December 19, 6:00. T2

Guofeng (National Style). 1935. China. Directed by Luo Mingyou, Zhu Shilin. With Ruan Lingyu, Li Lili, Zheng Junli. Ruan’s last film before her sensational suicide in 1935. Ruan and Li are sisters who fall for the same man in a drama made in line with the "New Life" movement of the time, promoting a return to traditional, Confucian values. Emblematic of her screen persona, Ruan plays the self-sacrificing sister who gives up love. Chinese intertitles, simultaneous English translation. 120 min.
Saturday, December 10, 6:30; Wednesday, December 21, 8:15. T2

Huangjiang nüxia (Swordswoman of Huangjiang, VI). 1931. China. Directed by Chen Kengran, Shangguan Wu. With Xu Qinfang, He Zhigang. This wildly popular film spawned twelve sequels, but only the sixth episode survives. Like many of the wuxia pian genre films then, it was also based on a serial novel of the same name. The plucky heroine wanders around jianghu (the martial arts world) battling a giant bird, animated eagles, and another superheroine wielding an enormous barbell. Chinese and English intertitles. 94 min. With excerpts from the progenitor of all wuxia pian, Huoshao Hongliansi (The Red Lotus Temple). 1928–31. China. Directed by Zhang Sichuan. A seminal, influential series with seventeen sequels. Chinese and English intertitles. 20 min.
Saturday, December 10, 8:45; Thursday, December 22, 8:30. T2

Yichuan zhenzhu (The Pearl Necklace). 1926. China. Directed by Li Zeyuan. With Lei Xiadian, Liu Hanjun, Zhai Qiqi. Based on Guy de Maupassant’s short story "The Necklace," this is one of the earliest surviving Chinese features. A wife borrows a necklace for a party, and it is subsequently stolen. Her husband embezzles funds to pay for the loss, but he is discovered and arrested. Boasting high production values, the film also offers a fascinating look at rich, Westernized life in 1920s Shanghai. Chinese and English intertitles. 127 min.
Sunday, December 11, 2:00; Thursday, December 22, 6:00. T2

Yinmu yanshi II (Amorous History of the Silver Screen II). 1931. China. Directed by Cheng Bugao. With Xuan Jinglin, Tan Zhiyuan, Wang Zhengxin. Rarely seen, Amorous History of the Silver Screen was originally a two-part feature, but only an incomplete second part of the film still exists. A docudrama that follows the ups and downs of prostitute-turned-film-actress Xuan, while opening a window onto the film industry in prewar Shanghai, complete with an extraordinary behind-the-scenes tour at the Mingxing studio. Chinese and English intertitles. 54 min.
Monday, December 12, 6:00; Sunday, December 18, 2:00. T2

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