History, comedy, action and drama are never blended as well as they are in this dazzling film made by and starring an all-star cast and production team.
Set in China in 1913, after the Revolution that brought down the Ching Dynasty, the military has temporary control of the country but revolutionary rebels are secretly organizing to overthrow the goverrnment. One of the rebels is Wan (Brigette Lin), an androgynous western-educated daughter of one of the generals in power. Willing to sacrifice herself and her father for the revolution, Wan's mission is to get ahold of a secret document in her father's possession. To do so, Wan engages the help of a pretty musician turned thrief, Sheung Hung (Cherie Cheung) and an aspiring actress, Pat Nell (Sally Yeh).With the Chinese Revolution and the Peking Opera traditions swirling in the background, the three women, along with a male rebel and a soldier, set off on a rollicking rollercoaster ride of intrigue and espionage.
Beautifully filmed at break-neck speed with rapid fire action sequences, Peking Opera Blues is the brainchild of its producer and director Tsui Hark. Tsui had originally approached John Woo to direct this movie about three female heroines trying to change China's fate, but Woo opted to direct a movie about three men in a moral dilemna called A Better Tomorrow, which Tsui Hark also produced. Tsui then decided to direct Peking Opera Blues himself with action choreography by the great Ching Siu Tung (Chinese Ghost Story series, Swordsman series), music by the acclaimed James Wong (Once Upon a Time In China),and an insightful script by award winning Raymond To (I Have a Date With Spring, Hu du Men). The epitome of Hong Kong film making, Peking Opera Blues was instant classic upon its release in 1986.
