Shi Dongshan was a contemporary of Hou Yao, keen on romantic dramas and visual imagery in his early career. After the Manchurian Incident in 1931, he turned his gaze to social ills and began to gain praises from leftwing critics. March of Youth, a condemnation of wartime traitors released during the 1937 Marco Polo Bridge Incident, received rave reviews and went down in history as a major national defence film. In this war epic written by famous playwright Tian Han, a rich heir falls in love with a worker and, enlightened by the progressive ideas of the working class, cuts ties with his family. It sets out to condemn not only war but imperialism and feudalism, a conscious call for change in the sociopolitical system of China. Shi remained a prominent figure in postwar Chinese cinema with such great works as Eight Thousand Li of Cloud and Moon (1947) and The Bride's Sorrow (1948). He however committed suicide in 1955 for fear of being embroiled into political turmoil. The cause of his death had remained a taboo for years.

Screening Courtesy of China Film Archive

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