|
Opium War Film Opens in China to Tears and Anger
1997-06-23
Beijing -- Chinese moviegoers on Friday greeted the opening day of a film about the Opium War that forced China to cede Hong Kong to Britain with tears, anger and patriotism, Reuter reported. The film, released to coincide with the return of Hong Kong to China at midnight on June 30, portrays the 1840-42 Opium War that ended with China allowing British imports of opium and giving up Hong Kong to Britain. "I cried continuously while watching the movie," said Zhang Bohua of Capital Normal University after taking in the first show in the morning at the Capital Movie Theater in Beijing. Some moviegoers said the film made them feel indignant over foreign treatment of China in the 19th century. Others felt patriotic that Hong Kong would return to the motherland in a matter of days. "After watching the movie I felt our country must be powerful," said Pang Jichang of China Central Radio. "If it is not powerful, then it will be invaded." Director Xie Jin, one of China's most famous directors for officially approved films, has reacted angrily to criticism that he made a "propaganda" film and denied that any of the $12 million budget came directly from state coffers. The audience cheered the heroics of Qing Dynasty official Lin Zexu, who sparked the war by destroying 1.36 million kg (3.0 million lb.) of opium in 1839. The crowd cursed another Chinese official who sold out his country. However, the significance of the film was to mark the return of Hong Kong to China and teach people history, and not simply entertain, they said. "The Opium War has educational value," said a young woman who works at a company under the China's Ministry of Agriculture, which provided free tickets to the show on a weekday. The movie is being released nationally in China and foreign distributors in several Asian countries have also agreed to show the film. Xie showed the movie to potential distributors at Cannes in May and later traveled to the United States to promote the film. The director has compared the Opium War to Japanese militarism in the 1930s and Germany's massacre of Jews during World War II, saying it was a shameful period of British history and Britain should admit its mistakes.
China Challenges Taiwanese Film Awards (2005-11-13)Diary of Nanjing Massacre witness to be made into film (1999-01-12)Opium War Film Opens in China to Tears and Anger (1997-06-23)4 (11285)
| 
