Her Stories in the City

Her Tender Heart

Dir: Tang Huang
Orig Story: Du Ning’s A Daughter’s Heart
Scr: Qin Yifu (aka Nellie Chin Yu)
Prod Co: MP & GI
Cast: Lucilla You Min, Wang Lai, Wang Yin, Chang Yang, Lan Tien-hung
1959 | B&W | Digital File | Mandarin | Chi & Eng Subtitles | 101min

Pei-ying (Lucilla You Min) has been lovingly raised by her father (Wang Yin), unaware of the secrets surrounding her birth. When her ‘aunt’ (Wang Lai) visits from Italy, Pei-ying feels an inexplicable bond—until she discovers the shocking truth: her ‘aunt’ is actually her mother, who abandoned her as a baby to elope with her lover, who is in fact Pei-ying’s biological father. Now, the young woman faces an agonising choice—should she move to Italy with her real parents and pursue her passion for music, or remain loyal to the man she has always known as her father?

Her Tender Heart is adapted from a popular novel by Du Ning, a Mainland writer who relocated to Hong Kong in 1949. Rather than adapting it into a film himself, the screenplay was crafted by Qin Yifu (aka Nellie Chin Yu), who skillfully condenses the complex story into a well-structured and engaging narrative. Both the novel and the film refrain from casting moral judgement on the mother’s choices, with Wang Lai delivering a nuanced portrayal of this woman torn between family obligations and her personal pursuit of romance and dreams. In her first role with MP & GI, Lucilla You Min shines as Pei-ying, delivering a heartfelt performance that won her Best Actress at the 6th Asian Film Festival, cementing her status as Hong Kong cinema’s sweetheart in the 1950s and 60s.

Courtesy of Cathay-Keris Films Pte Ltd

The contents of the programme do not represent the views of the presenter. The presenter reserves the right to change the programme should unavoidable circumstances make it necessary.