Dir/Scr: Chan Pei
Orig Story: Lee Siu-wan
Prod Co: Shung Shan
Co-starring: Ho Fei-fan, Leung Sing-por, Chan Kam-tong, Lee Hong-kum
1963 B&W D Beta Cantonese 105 min

This film adapts the homonymous Cantonese opera repertory by renowned operatic maestros Ho Fei-fan and Leung Sing-por alongside Chan Kam-tong. The beautiful and talented Bak Ping-kei (Law), daughter of the Minister (Leung Sing-por), secretly falls in love with General Sima (Ho Fei-fan) and gets pregnant. But the Emperor (Chan Kam-tong), under the advice of the Counsellor (Siu Sun Kuen), decides to marry Bak as his imperial concubine. To protect her entire family, Bak reluctantly abandons her newborn son and pretends to reject Sima. Years later, when the empire is at war, Bak urges Sima to fight against the enemy, but is taunted for being unfaithful. Feeling mortified, Bak drowns herself in a river. Law captures a delicate balance between toughness and vulnerability. In the heartrending suicide scene, she exquisitely portrays the inexpressible grievance and poignancy her character goes through.