East Palace West Palace

Rating:
Summary: Interesting story of repression of gays in China
Review: "Dong gong xi gong (East Palace West Palace)" (1996; also released under the title "Behind the Forbidden City" in 1998) is a rather unique story about the overnight detention of a young gay Chinese man, A Lan, who was caught having sex with a man in a park near the Forbidden Palace in Beijing. Although homosexuality was not actually illegal during the time in which the film is set, gays in that country were routinely harrassed by the police, who could detain and arrest them for "hooliganism". The film unreels as A Lan tells his captor, a young park policeman named Xiao Shi, about his life, including his gradual realization that he was gay, and his experiences and yearnings. He reveals that he is married, which makes him a bit of an outcast among his other gay friends who gather at the park. His childhood recollections somewhat explain why he has a particular fascination to big, male authority figures who treat him badly, including his police captor. The policeman, who consistently called A Lan "disgusting" and worthy of shame, is also fighting his own fascination with the boy's story, and his growing attraction to him as well.

From what I have read in a couple of other reviews, the film has considerable political relevance in that it was the first Chinese film to criticize the government's hypocritical treatment of homosexuals. The film's director was reportedly arrested in 1997, and it is only because of friends' actions that the film was smuggled out of the country, where it was featured at the Cannes film festival. Obviously, I can't comment or judge based on political or cultural relevance, but the story itself is intriguing, the cinematography and direction excellent, and I was especially intrigued with Si Han, the young actor who played A Lan, who probably had constant, dramatic dialogue during 60 of the film's 94 minutes...

Rating:
Summary: An excellent film
Review: Beautifully made and mesmerizing film. Very sensuous, satisfying and somewhat poetic. Two leading actors are superb. In many ways, the film is a masterpiece.

Rating:
Summary: Disapointing
Review: It's not a terrible movie but some mistakes mar it. The captive character being a writer seems to give the script the necessary license to stop making sense from time to time. I guess these are the 'poetic' parts other people point out. Well, I think this device takes the audience out of the movie, makes it boring and strains believability, but of course that's only my taste. I was looking to a more claustrophobic and intense experience. Also the police-man character is quite monotonous.
The dvd has a quite good 1.66 non-anamorphic transfer.

Rating:
Summary: Hauntingly Beautiful
Review: Si Han performs brilliantly as A-Lan, a young gay writer who falls madly in love with Shi, a macho police officer (played by Hu Jun) who has arrested and proceeds to interrogate him intensively. A key idea to understanding this film is that there is no such thing as love, real compassionate devotionate unconditional love, without at least some element(s) or component(s) of suffering or genuine sacrifice involved. Si Han's powerful acting renders A-Lan's ardent passion, suffering and compassion into vivid cinematic actualization, translated very well to VHS with excellent subtitling.

There is mystery, subtlety, subtext, metaphor and allusion in this movie which only heighten the audience's interest. What, for example, is A-Lan referring to exactly when he speaks of his being "married?" We are captivated by this mesmerizing captive as he gradually unveils his story, and his soul, to the cop, his captor, his tormentor, possibly even his executioner, yet at the same time his deeply beloved.

In the hands of a lesser director this film might've failed on any number of levels, but Zhang Yuan has crafted a jewel, a delicate labor of love no less. This film reminds the reviewer of the sort of humanistic psychology reminiscent of Carl Rogers, also the kinds of healing breakthroughs achieved by Gong Shu, art therapist and acclaimed student of psychodrama's cofounder Zerka Moreno. "East Palace, West Palace" is so imbrued with hope, care, sensitivity and metanoia for and towards its characters that one gets the feeling these actors (and actresses) all of them are Yuan's own beloved children. With a gentle but firm, parental hand he directs and guides his exceptional cast to incredible fruition in their compelling portrayals and core revelations.

There is something for everyone here. There is fantastic and poignant humor; one will come away never thinking of "bus" in quite the same light ever again. There is sex; lots of it, gobs of it, sometimes even extremely violent sex, though rendered all-the-more powerfully precisely because much of it is left to that ocean of sensuality and eroticism itself, the theatre of the mind. And there are moments in this movie where your eyes will well with tears, and you will welcome them.

If it is true that, as comparative mytheologian Joseph Campbell insists, "from sacrifice comes bliss," then the many and great sacrifices Zhang Yuan made to bring "East Palace, West Palace" to us are rewarded in the exceptional bliss which you will discover and engage in this rare, precious and life-giving gem from Beijing. Please don't miss it.

Rating:
Summary: An excellent film
Review: Si Han performs brilliantly as A-Lan, a young gay writer who falls madly in love with Shi, a macho police officer (played by Hu Jun) who has arrested and proceeds to interrogate him intensively. A key idea to understanding this film is that there is no such thing as love, real compassionate devotionate unconditional love, without at least some element(s) or component(s) of suffering and genuine sacrifice involved. Si Han's powerful acting renders A-Lan's ardent passion, suffering and compassion into vivid cinematic actualization, translated very well to VHS with excellent subtitling.

There is mystery, subtlety, subtext, metaphor and allusion in this movie which only heighten the audience's interest. What, for example, is A-Lan referring to exactly when he speaks of his being "married?" We are captivated by this mesmerizing captive as he gradually unveils his story, and his soul, to the cop, his captor, his tormentor, possibly even his executioner, yet at the same time his deeply beloved.

In the hands of a lesser director this film of intense homosexual love might've failed on any number of levels, but Zhang Yuan has crafted a jewel, a delicate labor of love. This film reminds the reviewer of the sort of humanistic psychology practiced by Carl Rogers, also the varieties of healing breakthroughs achieved by Gong Shu, art therapist and acclaimed student of psychodrama's cofounder Zerka Moreno. "East Palace, West Palace" is so imbrued with hope, dynamism, care, sensitivity and metanoia for and towards its characters that one gets the heartfelt impression these actors (and actresses) all of them are Yuan's own beloved children. With a gentle but firm, parental hand he directs and guides his exceptional cast to incredible fruition in their compelling portrayals, interpersonal as well as intrapersonal explorations, and core revelations.

There is something for everyone here. There is fantastic and poignant humor; one will come away never thinking of "bus" in quite the same light ever again. There is sex; lots of it, gobs of it, sometimes even extremely violent sex, though rendered all-the-more powerfully precisely because the overarching essence of it is left to that ocean of sensuality and polymorphous eroticism itself, the theatre of the human mind. And there are moments in this movie where your eyes will well with tears, and you will welcome them.

If it is true that, as comparative mytheologian Joseph Campbell insists, "from sacrifice comes bliss," then the many and great sacrifices Zhang Yuan made to bring "East Palace, West Palace" to us are rewarded in the exceptional bliss you will discover, confront and engage in this rare, precious and life-restorative gem from Beijing. Please don't miss it.