Yijian Mei

Alternative title: Spray of Plum Blossoms, A
Synopsis: Silent Chinese feature film based on The Two Gentlemen of Verona. Two young men graduate from a Shanghai military academy, and one Hu Luting (Valentine) accepts a posting in Guangzhou, chiding his friend Lede (Proteus) for preferring to stay home and pursue a romance with Huting’s sister Zhuli (Julia) to whom Lede soon becomes engaged. Lede’s father orders him to accept a commission in the same Guangzhou garrison where he finds that his friend Hu Luting has fallen in love with Luohua (Silvia) the daughter of their commanding officer and Lede’s cousin. The symbol of their love is a spray of plum blossoms.
Country: China
Medium: Film
Technical information: Black-and-white / Silent
Year of release: 1931
Duration: c100

Director

BU Wancang

Producer

LUO Mingyou

Cinematographer

HUANG Shaofen

Screenplay

HUANG Yicou

Production Design

ZHAO Fuli

Cast

Notes: `Spoken’ in Mandarin with English intertitles.
General: The film had English inter-titles on its original release; the characters have different names in the Chinese and English cast listings and inter-titles. Some scholars have commented that since few foreigners watched the films the English inter-titles were there more to give an air of the West than to serve a practical purpose.
History: The film, issued in 11 reels, premiered July 23 1931 at the Peiping theatre in Shanghai. Released on DVD (all regions) by Cinema Epoch in 2007 with TWO STARS IN THE MILKY WAY, a film with no obvious Shakespeare connection.
Reviews: http://www.chinesemirror.com/index/2007/01/retro_review_yi.html (accessed 3/2008). The review concludes: ‘In spite of some gaping plot holes, Chinese audiences probably found YIJIAN MEI an entertaining diversion, with an excellent cast that included some of the biggest stars of that era. The surviving print varies in quality, and is badly in need of musical accompaniment. It may not have been the best thing its makers ever produced, but then again, neither was Two Gentlemen of Verona’.

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