FILM (1947)
Long Live the Missus Zhang Fa, Jiang Tianliu, Shangguan Yunzhu, Han Fei, Shi Hui Director: Sang Hu
The most sublime comedy in the annals of Chinese-language cinema, Long Live the Missus (1947) sports a cast list that reads like a 'who's who' of pre-Communist era Shanghai superstars. But to 21st-century fans, it is the name of scriptwriter Eileen Chang Ai-ling (1920-1995) that has proved the most enduring.
The past 25 years has seen screen adaptations of such Chang literary works as Love in a Fallen City, The Red Rose and the White Rose, Flowers of Shanghai and, most famously, Lust, Caution. None has solved the conundrum of transferring the exquisiteness of Chang's prose to celluloid, a problem far less thorny when it comes to her output as scenario writer in Shanghai and Hong Kong from 1946-64.
Long Live the Missus is the most satisfying of the bunch, a paean to metropolitan modernity and testament to the sophistication of Shanghai cinema on the eve of the city's 'liberation'.
The plot has its roots in the love triangles that were a staple of Hollywood and Parisian boudoir farces, but with a script grounded in the milieu of Shanghai's petite bourgeoisie. The title's wife (Jiang Tianliu) is the perfect spouse, with the wit, intelligence and tact to make her the ideal companion for her suave husband (Zhang Fa, right with Jiang). Her behind-the-scenes manoeuvrings are responsible for his business success, happy home life, and even a budding romance between her brother (Han Fei) and sister-in-law (Wang Yi). But she meets her biggest test when her hubby takes up with a seductive gold digger (Shangguan Yunzhu).
The weaving of sparkling dialogue and droll situations results in the kind of gossamer worthy of Ernst Lubitsch. Under the masterful direction of Sang Hu, it is a showcase of brilliant performers in parts tailor-made for their talents. Even the relatively small role of the wife's father is played to maximum effect by a major star, Shi Hui. Generally acknowledged as the leading character actor of his generation, Shi's career was destroyed within a decade by the anti-Rightest campaign that led to his death in 1957.