The Romantic Monk
Dir: Chun Kim
Scr/ Librettist: Lee Yuen-man, Poon Cheuk
Orig Story: Cao Xueqin
Prod Co: Yuzhou
Cast: Ho Fei-fan, Cheng Bik-ying, Ying Lai-lei, Wang Jiali
1956 B&W D Beta Cantonese Chinese Lyrics 117 min
Scr/ Librettist: Lee Yuen-man, Poon Cheuk
Orig Story: Cao Xueqin
Prod Co: Yuzhou
Cast: Ho Fei-fan, Cheng Bik-ying, Ying Lai-lei, Wang Jiali
1956 B&W D Beta Cantonese Chinese Lyrics 117 min
The Romantic Monk
was consecutively performed onstage over 300 times during the 1940s, solidifying Ho Fei-fan's persona as the ‘romantic monk'. Director Chun Kim was hired to adapt it for the big screen, and The Romantic Monk becomes his first and only Cantonese opera film. Based on Dreams of the Red Chamber, the story begins with Lin Daiyu entering the Jia mansion and ends with Jia Baoyu's renouncement of his worldly identity to become a monk. Famous scenes from the novel are retained, ultimately culminating in the final act where Baoyu mourns his dead love Daiyu, where Ho delivers a knockout 12-minute singing performance ‘Baoyu Leaves Home for Monkhood'. Veteran singer Au Wai-chuen leads a mixed chorus of
nanyin
performers to narrate plot developments, an interesting set-up and technique that adds to the film's musicality, beauty, and romance.