Farewell, My Concubine - Movie Review Example

At the beginning of the movie, the young actors are shown in total awe and devotion towards the master. Despite the political disturbances affecting the opera, somehow this relationship between the master and pupils does not change much. China faced Japanese invasion immediately before the communist war with the national government. After Sun-Yat-Sen’s demise, the nationalist government was weak under Chiang and did not stand a chance against the relentless communist attack. That was a period of total uncertainty and student unrest just before the Japanese occupation had already crippled the opera, though they had mutually inspired each other. Before it could take the occupation in its stride, the Japanese disappeared and the country got engulfed by the communist onslaught. Not only the opera but also all the art forms came to a grinding halt while freedom of expression even in artistic form became taboo. The Cultural Revolution bulldozed the traditional culture and its expressions and actors and other employees of Opera had to seek a livelihood elsewhere. It was a great cultural shock to the entire generation. It took 25 years for the Cultural Revolution to end when a modicum of expression had been allowed in 1976 and Opera came into being in a modified form. All these events are projected in this cinema with great historical accuracy and reality. It is famous for technical skill, historical accuracy, elaborate costumes, exotic locations, and effective storytelling, and incredible acting. The story covers 52 years, involves the best Chinese actors and we see the vestiges of old gentle society disappearing to make way to the new rude reality. The effeminate Douzi, attractive and talented Gong Li, Zang Feinghi as the masculine Shitou could not have acted better. The reflection of loyalty, helplessness, events and their powerful grip on the life of the main protagonists, and the scene where the stage brothers were dragged in the presence of the crowd to confess, the cruelty of the Red Guards are all so real. Asexuality, powerful love for performance, confusion between reality and acting, and the jealous reaction are interwoven with exquisite seduction in the backdrop of a multilayered political revolution with terrible cultural impact. Both youngsters undergo rigorous training under master’s supervision for thirteen years.  He shapes them pushes them beyond endurance towards perfection which pays off eventually and both become major opera stars. The topic of homosexuality exists in the background without consummation. The roles were hoped to be of lifelong length as king and concubine and with this strenuous training and the accompanying principles and rules, Douzi was forced to live like a female. His role-playing starts when his mother cuts off his sixth finger and the violent preparation for the role continues throughout till he considers himself a female in love with the ‘King’. "To stick together until the day you die" is highlighted as his unshakable faith and he could neither tolerate the woman who becomes his friend’s wife nor the separation from the friend due to Cultural Revolution. The tragedy ends not only with his death but also with the death of the woman whom he hated.“In this sense, Cheng's story is more tragic than that of Concubine Yu. Yu's tale ends with her sacrificial death for her love, a mutual passion she enjoyed with the Chu King, whereas Cheng is never blessed with the realization of the dream for which he yearns. It is only through cutting his throat by the side of his beloved "king" that he can realize his wish of being a cultural female Yu”