This is a holy crap of a tragedy. A lot of suffering, a LOT of suffering. It's pretty brilliant I guess, tying Peking Opera and the recent Chinese history together. It again, like so many other recent period arthouse films about the Chinese, focuses on the pawns sacrificed during these extraordinary times. It's a lot easier for Chinese people to view it because it's not "exotic" to us, no offense, western people, but to watch this movie as a showcase for foreign cultures, locations, and customs, is to miss its point. So if you read any review that describes the picture as "sexy!...exotic!" chances are those guys are unreliable.
The movie begins with the mutilation of a boy, then beatings, then death/suicide of a boy, then more beatings, then rape of a boy--and that's only the first act. If it weren't for the political themes the movie would've simply been a sadistic melodrama. After watching that first 30 minutes I realized why Painted Faces had to be toned down. What a tragedy. The acting is great, the lines are great, the plot is standard with its twists and turns--but how can you even think about the plot when watching a movie like this. The final scene of this movie is outstanding, it's short, but so brilliantly gives the movie its closure and sums up the movie.
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