Sammi Cheng — the face of many queers?fave skincare brand
SK-II — plays Wang Qi Yao, a famous Shanghainese beauty whose
fate and fortunes are closely intertwined with the political changes
in China.

Adapted from the 1986 bestselling novel by Wang An Yi, the film
traces her life from the glamorous high societies of 1940s, to the
tumultuous days of the Cultural Revolution and the Great Leap Forward,
right through to modern-day Shanghai in the 1980s. Qi Yao's romances
with various handsome suitors over the years are the stuff of pure
melodrama — while the suitors themselves (Hu Jun, Daniel Wu,
Huang Jue) are the stuff of fag fantasies.

Directed by gay filmmaker Stanley Kwan (Lan Yu, Centrestage,
Hold You Tight, Rouge), the mise-en-scene is lavish in the beginning
— the music, sets, costumes and sumptuous photography suitably
reflect the nostalgia felt for old China.

But as the reels roll on, the film starts to lose steam. Anxious
to cover the epic scope of the book, the film moves from one crucial
episode to another without much dramatic depth. Sammi is perfect
in the first half of the movie, but has great difficulty ageing
her character in the second half. Her so-so performance makes one
long for Maggie Cheung, Gong Li or Carina Lau — or even Shu
Qi — to take her place.

Still, fans of Chinese cinema, politics and history shouldn't miss
this ambitious production.