Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom (Restored version)
Dir: Lee Tit
Orig Story: Zhang Shouqing
Scr/Librettist: Tong Tik-sang
Prod Co: Hawks
Cast: Yam Kim-fai, Pak Suet-sin, Lan Chi Pak, Leung Sing-por
1959 B&W DCP Cantonese Chi & Eng subtitles 142 min
Orig Story: Zhang Shouqing
Scr/Librettist: Tong Tik-sang
Prod Co: Hawks
Cast: Yam Kim-fai, Pak Suet-sin, Lan Chi Pak, Leung Sing-por
1959 B&W DCP Cantonese Chi & Eng subtitles 142 min
Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom holds a special place in the history of Hong Kong cinema. Released in 1959 at the height of the 1950s Golden Era, the film was directed by Lee Tit—one of the luminaries of that era. The 1950s was also a particularly fruitful period for Cantonese opera films and Lee rode that tide, working with Sin Fung Ming Opera Troupe, first releasing the wonderful The Legend of Purple Hairpin (1959). Later in the same year, they brought Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom on silver screen, which reached even higher artistic levels in its superb integration of Cantonese opera and film. Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom was written by Tong Tik-sang, one of the greatest librettists in Cantonese opera history, who elevated the medium by incorporating classic literature into his work. Meanwhile the film also showed how Sin Fung Ming Opera Troupe, under the leadership of veteran opera artist Pak Suet-sin, was instrumental in lifting the film medium to higher creative grounds.
The opera is based on a Yuan Dynasty work, which tells the story of a courtesan (Pak) and a scholar (Yam Kim-fai), who fall in love as they exchange poems for three years. Their romance is thwarted by a corrupt official (Lan Chi Pak) and subjected to the toughest of tests despite the help of a sympathetic friend (Leung Sing-por). Yam, Pak, Leung and Lan are among the most celebrated actors of their time, all with cherished exploits in both film and opera, which are underpinned by their intangible chemistry developed after years of working with each other. Together, they animate Tong's poetic verses, graceful lyrics and captivating drama, with the marvellous performance consolidated by Lee's brilliant cinematic mise-en-scéne and editing. Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom is a masterpiece where the three art forms of opera, film and literature converge.