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Revenge of an Actress

Revenge of an Actress (simplified Chinese: 女伶复仇记; traditional Chinese: 女伶復仇記; pinyin: Nǚlíng Fùchóu Jì) is a 1929 Chinese silent film. It follows a love triangle between two students and an actress, whereby she seeks revenge for her lover being blinded by her scorned suitor. Initially directed by Bu Wancang, directing was taken over by star Wang Hanlun when he proved unreliable; production and editing was also handled by Wang through her Hanlun Film Company. The film was reportedly a commercial success, allowing Wang to retire from the film industry.

Revenge of an Actress
Traditional Chinese女伶復仇記
Simplified Chinese女伶复仇记
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinNǚlíng Fùchóu Jì
Directed by
Screenplay byBao Tianxiao [zh]
Starring
Production
company
Hanlun Film Company
Release date
  • 1929 (1929)
CountryChina
LanguageSilent

Plot

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Two students, Long and Yu, have fallen in love with the actress Youlan. She falls in love with Yu, spurning Long, who blinds his former friend in a fit of rage. Youlan seeks to avenge her beloved, but dies with her vengeance unfulfilled.[1]

Production

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Having begun her career with Orphan Rescues Grandfather in 1923 and established a reputation as a tragedienne, the actress Wang Hanlun had failed to receive her salary when working for Shanghai's dominant Mingxing and Tianyi film companies. Frustrated by the situation, as well as what she perceived to be an exploitive time in Singapore, Wang decided to produce one final film before retiring. She thus established the Hanlun Film Company, renting space in a building owned by Minxin.[2] As her logo, she used an image of a cat, imitating the lion used by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.[3]

Wang purchased a screenplay, then titled Blind Love, from the dramatist Bao Tianxiao [zh] for 800 yuan (equivalent to ¥71,000 in 2019).[4] She hired Bu Wancang to handle directing, but after he proved unreliable and spent much of his time gambling on horses, Wang decided to finish the film, now titled Revenge of an Actress, herself.[5] Further setbacks emerged when Minxing reclaimed its office space, requiring Wang to finish filming – with the assistance of Cai Chusheng – at her home.[2] She therefore became one of China's earliest women directors, preceded by Xie Caizhen (An Orphan's Cry, 1925)[5] and Yang Naimei (A Wondrous Woman, 1928).[6]

Once principal photography was completed, Wang edited Revenge of an Actress herself. After purchasing a projector, she spent forty days at home, playing and cutting the film bit by bit until she achieved a finished product.[5] Thematically, the film was a family melodrama, drawing heavily from the Mandarin Ducks and Butterflies school of literature.[2] It starred Wang as the titular actress, with other roles filled by Gao Zhanfei [zh], Fei Boqing, and Cai Chusheng.[7]

Release and reception

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Revenge of an Actress was released in 1929, going on tour across China with stops that included Suzhou, Beijing, and Wuxi.[3] During the intermission, she would stand on stage and speak with audience members, obtaining feedback.[8] The film was reportedly a commercial success, allowing Wang to leave the film industry. She used part of the profits to finalize her divorce from her estranged husband, with other profits being used to study cosmetology. In 1930, she opened the Hanlun Beauty Salon in Shanghai.[2]

References

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  1. ^ China Film Publishing House 2005, p. 4.
  2. ^ a b c d Wei 2017.
  3. ^ a b Zhang 2008, p. 11.
  4. ^ Wang 2016, p. 55.
  5. ^ a b c Wei 2012, p. 15.
  6. ^ Wei 2018.
  7. ^ Cheng 1980, p. 626.
  8. ^ Chang 1999, p. 136.

Works cited

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  • 百年电影与江苏, 1905-2005 [A Century of Film and Jiangsu, 1905-2005] (in Chinese). Beijing: China Film Publishing House. 2005. ISBN 978-7-106-02389-8.
  • Chang, Michael (1999). "The Good, the Bad, & the Beautiful: Movie Actresses & Public Discourse in Shanghai, 1920s-1930s". In Zhang, Yingjin (ed.). Cinema and Urban Culture in Shanghai, 1922–1943. Redwood City, California: Stanford University Press. pp. 128–159. ISBN 978-0-8047-3572-8.
  • Cheng Jihua (程季华) (1980). 中国电影发展史: 初稿 [History of the Development of Chinese Cinema: A Preliminary Review] (in Chinese). Vol. 1. Beijing: China Film Publishing House.
  • Wang Qinyi (王青亦) (2016). 制造性别：现代中国的性别传播 [Manufacturing Gender: Gender Communication in Modern China] (in Chinese). Beijing: Social Sciences Academic Press. ISBN 978-7-5097-8950-6.
  • Wei, S. Louisa (2012). "Women's Trajectories in Chinese and Japanese Cinemas: A Chronological Overview". In Taylor, Kate E. (ed.). On East Asian Filmmakers. Dekalog 4. Vol. 4. Brighton: Wallflower Press. pp. 13–45. ISBN 978-1-906660-31-4.
  • Wei, S. Louisa (2017). Gaines, Jane; Vatsal, Radha; Dall'Asta, Monica (eds.). "Helen Wang". Women Film Pioneers Project. Columbia University Libraries. doi:10.7916/d8-zc8b-7c47.
  • Wei, S. Louisa (2018). Gaines, Jane; Vatsal, Radha; Dall’Asta, Monica (eds.). "Yang Naimei". Women Film Pioneers Project. Columbia University Libraries. doi:10.7916/d8-zc8b-7c47.
  • Zhang Wei (張偉) (2008). 昨夜星光燦爛: 民國影壇的28位巨星 [Stars Shining in the Night: 28 Superstars in the Film Industry of the Republic of China] (in Chinese). Vol. 1. Taipei: Showway Publishing. ISBN 978-986-221-078-9.
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