Dir: Arthur Hiller
Scr: Dale Wasserman
Edi: Robert C. Jones
Cast: Peter O'Toole, Sophia Loren, James Coco
Italy/USA | 1972 | Colour | 35mm | English | Chi subtitles | 129min

Alex Cheung says that his best teachers in life are none other than Don Quixote and Ah Q from Lu Xun's novel, the Story of Ah Q. The hero of Arthur Hiller's film–an adaptation of the musical inspired by Don Quixote–happens to be a combination of the two. While imprisoned during the Spanish Inquisition, writer Cervantes (Peter O'Toole) and his fellow prisoners act out a play based on the story of Don Quixote, an old knight who embarks on an adventure of madness. The widely imaginative, multi-layered narrative carries deep meanings about the relationship between the creator and his creation. ‘The Impossible Dream', one of the featured songs, is perhaps the key to finding one's purpose of life.

Image courtesy of Park Circus/MGM Studios