Dream of the Red Chamber (1944)

Original title

紅樓夢

Directed by

Bu Wancang

Genre

drama film

Country

People's Republic of China

Runtime

2h 05m

Rating

6.8 of 10 from 5 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

An adaptation of the classic novel about a wealthy family's decline and a love story between a sensitive young man and a melancholic woman. The film uses Yue Opera style and casts a female actor in the male lead role.

classicalromantictragicelegantslow-pacedculturedfemale-led ensemblevisually ornate

What happens

Dream of the Red Chamber (traditional Chinese: 紅樓夢; simplified Chinese: 红楼梦; pinyin: Hónglóu mèng) (also known as Dream of the Red Mansions and The Red Chamber Dream) is a 1944 Chinese film directed by Bu Wancang. It is an adaptation of the classic 18th century Qing-era novel by Cao Xueqin. The film follows Yue Opera tradition of casting a female actor in a male role. It is the third known film adaptation of the novel. The earliest was a short film made in 1924 starring male Peking Opera singer Mei Lanfang as Lin Daiyu, and the second a silent film made in 1927, directed by Ren Pengnian and Yu Boyan. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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