| NOTE: This review refers to the DVD by IVL/Celestial in Hong Kong.
Empress Dowager, directed by Li Han-hsing, is the famous story of China's last Empress, Tzu-His (CiXi), whose long reign heralded the end of the Ching Dynasty. This 1975 feature from Shaw Brothers, recently released by Celestial/IVL, is a lavish, star-studded feast for the eyes, which holds up well to later, related films (such as Empress Dowager 1989 (which takes a look at CiXi at a younger age; see my review for the 1989 movie for more details), and director Li Han-hsiang's own Last Emperor in 1986 (not to be confused with Bertolucci's award winning 1987 effort).
In the Shaw version (ED75), Ti Lung plays the Emperor Kuang Hsu, a nephew of the Empress Dowager whom she had placed on the thrown following the untimely death of her own son. Kuang is a young though naïve emperor with good intentions who is always atodds with the Empress who raised him, ultimately, as a 'stand in' Emperor. The manipulative Mother Dowager is the real ruler and everybody knows it. The movie could be said to focus on two basic themes: one revolves around Kuang Hsu's desire that the Chinese take the war to the Japanese (who are vying for Korea) and to show thereby that China is not weak. The Empress however is against starting a war and tries to keep Kuang occupied with court business and royal concubines. Both Empress and Emperor are disconnected with the desires and thinking of the Chinese people outside their palace grounds however, and this message is, in the end, voiced through a eunuch (David Chiang's character).
The other theme revolves around the eunuchs, and their place amongst the palace intrigues and contests for both power and survival. Lisa Lu, who plays the Empress Dowager, and whom is the Emperor's aunt (Ms. Lu would reprise her role in Bertolucci's The Last Emperor), is the real star of the movie. Her 'partner' in court intrigues is her eunuch, Li Lien-ling, skillfully portrayed by Miao Tien. David Chiang also turns in an excellent performance playing both eunuch and friend of Emperor Kuang Hsu, in what is surely a very rare kind of role for him. Ivy Lin Po has a small role as the other Empress Dowager, Chin Feng, sister to Cixi and I think may be playing the woman who was the actual mother of the Emperor. Fans of David Chiang and Ti Lung will be pleasantly surprised by their performance, despite their being in non-action oriented roles.
Empress Dowager is a tale of bold and dramatic proportions, and well worth viewing by anyone interested in Chinese history and strong character driven stories. Highly recommended!
SIGHT:
Like all the Celestial releases I've seen so far, the film looks pristine and is presented in its original widescreen Shawscope aspect ratio, though it is non-anamorphic. The colors are clear and sharp. There has been a bubbling stream of commentary regarding the fact that many of these Celestial releases are in fact a bit cropped on their top and bottom (one explanation for this, given through Celestial, is that in many instances there was damage to the prints on the edges, and therefore a decision was made to hide the damage. This will be more noticeable in some films than in others, of course, but as we are not likely to see another release of these movies anytime soon, these prints will have to serve - and in my opinion they serve well!)
EXTRAS:
There is an insightful Commentary by Paul Fonoroff and another gentleman. Also included are Interviews; Trailers; Color Stills; Original Poster; Production Notes; Cast/Crew Information
MAIN CAST:
Lucy Lu - Mother Empress Dowager
Ivy Ling Po - Empress Dowager Chin Feng/ sister
Ti Lung - Emperor Kuang Hsu
David Chiang - Little Lien Tsai (Kou Lien Tsai)
Miao Tien - Little Li Lien-ying
Hsiao Yao - Emperor's concubine
Lu Feng - Li Hung Chang
Chang Ying - Weng Tung Ho
Shen Lao - Weng Shang |
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