The Deformed

Dir/Scr: Griffin Yue Feng
Orig Story: Chun Yan
Prod Co: Shaw Brothers
Cast: Betty Loh Ti, Jin Quan (aka King Hu), Jing Miao, Zhao Ming
1960 | B&W | Digital File | Mandarin | Chinese Subtitles | 99min

The Deformed is about a woman who is torn between duty and love. Shuxian (Betty Loh Ti) is forced by circumstances to marry Yusheng (King Hu), a rich heir who was born deformed. Self-conscious about his appearance, Yusheng is content with being a husband in name only. When Shuxian meets her husband’s cousin, and gradually falls in love with him, she is faced with a dilemma. Before King Hu went on to take the reins as director of such martial arts classics as Dragon Inn (1967) and A Touch of Zen (1971), he was cast in the titular role in The Deformed. Hu gives a compelling performance as the Beast alongside Betty Loh Ti who likewise portrays the complex emotions of her Beauty with nuance. In The Deformed, a costume is worth a thousand words. Donning a traditional qipao, Loh assumes the role of a virtuous wife but as soon as she puts on a modern dress for her rendezvous, a woman yearning for the freedom to love jumps off the screen then and there.