The Legend of Purple Hairpin

Dir: Lee Tit
Orig Story: Tong Hin-jo
Scr/ Librettist: Tong Tik-sang
Prod Co: Golden Phoenix Films
Cast: Lung Kim Sung, Mui Shet-si, Leung Sing-po, Lan Chi Pak
1977 / Colour / D Beta / Cantonese / 113min

At the heart of Lee Tit's two dramatisations of Tong's libretto is Lee Tit's appreciation that the screen and the stage draw on very different aesthetics. Distilled down to a stylised synthesis of dialogues, visuals and ditties, the 1959 version starring the Yam-Pak duo proved to be an accomplished first attempt. Lee, 18 years later, cast the duo's protégées, Lung Kim Sung and Mui Suet-si in the lead roles. Given the full cinematic treatment, scenes are augmented, while spoken parts and narratives are eschewed in favour of the interplay between singing lines and the landscapes in which they are performed. The latter is the culmination of the finest of film and opera: elegant mise-en-scène is combined with vivid lyricism as the camera weaves its way organically through the changing locales reflecting the shifting moods and atmospheres between the lovestruck couple.