The Love Eterne

Dir/Scr: Li Han-hsiang
Prod Co: Shaws Brothers
Co-starring: Ivy Ling Po, Jen Chieh, Li Kun, Chen Yanyan, Kao Pao Shu
1963 / Colour / D Beta / Mandarin / Chi & Eng subtitles / 122min

At Shaw Bros, the huangmei diao craze began with Diau Charn (1958), reached new heights with The Kingdom and the Beauty (1959) and peaked with The Love Eterne. Director Li Han-hsiang spared no expenses in giving the iconic scenes of this household tale a superlative cinematic treatment. Progressing in one seamless sequence, these cinematic episodes assimilate the essences of Sichuan, Shanghai Yueju and Cantonese operas, using the sceneries to create sentiments that linger and haunt. In addition to sweeping the Asian Film Festival with four awards, The Love Eterne also won best feature film, best director, best film score and best film editing at the Golden Horse Awards, alongside a best leading actress trophy for Loh and a special award for outstanding performance for her on-screen partner Ivy Ling Po.

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