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Film breaks new ground
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Peng Zhaoxia
PAVILION of Women, a movie based upon the novel by Nobel Prize-winning author Pearl S Buck, will premiere in Shenzhen on Friday.
A strong cast
Pavilion of Women stars acclaimed American actor Willem Dafoe and Luo Yan, once a rising star in China who moved to the US to study her craft. Luo personally supervised the project from inception to finish, not only starring in but also producing the film and co-writing the screenplay.
The movie tells of a tragic love story between Madame Wu---a well-read and elegant upper-class lady---and a free-thinking missionary named Brother Andre in 1930s' Southeast China.
An international production
Pavilion of Women is a truly international production. The director is award-winning Hong Kong filmmaker Yim Ho. The screenplay was written by Luo Yan and Chinese-speaking Paul R Collins. The stirring musical score was composed by Conrad Pope, a native Californian who studied in Germany. Director of photography Poon Hang-Sang and production designer James Leung are both considered to be at the top of their craft in the Hong Kong film industry.
Luo Yan seems to have proven that Hollywood and Beijng really can make movies together.
About Pearl S Buck
To understand the background of this movie better, some knowledge of the author is essential.
One of only two women to win the Nobel Prize for literature, Pearl Buck developed her compassionate view of the world during the more than 37 years she spent in China. Pavilion of Women was published in 1946, several years after Buck had returned to US, where she had established herself as a well-known writer and essayist. She has been highly praised worldwide for her building cultural brides between China and western countries.
A significant theme
The movie deals with cultural clashes: Western Christianity and free love versus ancient Eastern feudalism. Madame Wu goes from obedient to actually acquiring freedom. In that respect, she symbolizes the era.
"In today's China, people no longer worry about food or clothing, as did in the last century," says Luo Yan. "Today, both in China and the West, middle class, middle-aged people are most concerned with spiritual freedom and finding true love, which is the theme of Pavilion of Women."
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