A Spray of Plum Blossoms (1931)

Original title

一剪梅

Directed by

Bu Wancang

Genre

drama film, silent film

Country

Republic of China

Runtime

1h 40m

Rating

6.2 of 10 from 4 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This is a silent film from 1931 China about friendships and romantic entanglements among young people. It follows their conflicts and reconciliations in a stylized setting.

melancholicpoeticlight-hearteddramaticstylizedslow-burnwhimsicalexperimental

What happens

A Spray of Plum Blossoms (Chinese: 一剪梅; pinyin: Yī jiǎn méi) is a 1931 Chinese silent film directed by Bu Wancang and released by Lianhua Film Company. The film is a loose adaptation of William Shakespeare's The Two Gentlemen of Verona, with an adapted screenplay written by Huang Yicuo. It stars Ruan Lingyu, Wang Cilong, Lim Cho Cho, and Jin Yan, It is one of multiple collaborations between Bu Wancang and stars Ruan Lingyu and Korean-born Jin Yan, such as Love and Duty. Noted for its experimental "Westernized stylings" including surreal decor and long-haired women soldiers, the film features English subtitles that scholars suggest functioned more as cultural signaling than practical translation. Recent scholarship in Chinese cinema studies and global Shakespeare adaptations regard it as an important early example of transnational cinematic dialogue. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

• The Peach Girl (1931)
• Three Modern Women (1932)
• Love and Duty (1931)
• Pink Dream (1932)
• New Women (1935)
• The Light of Maternal Instinct (1933)
• Wild Flower (1930)
• The Little Angel