Cinema
Center Stage
阮玲玉
Stanley Kwan · 1991
Synopsis
In the Shanghai of the twenties and thirties, Ruan Lingyu becomes the great star of silent cinema, nicknamed the Chinese Garbo. The film retraces her debut, her shoots and her love affairs, played by Maggie Cheung. It alternates this reconstruction with extracts from the actress's films, interviews with witnesses who knew her and scenes from 1991 in which Stanley Kwan's team, the director and actresses, discusses on screen how to portray her.
Context
The film, written by Yau Kong-kin from a story by Peggy Chiao, was produced by the company Golden Way; it was released in Taiwan on 29 November 1991 and in Hong Kong on 20 February 1992. Two actors in it play their own fathers, Sun Yu and Zheng Junli, and it cites films by Ruan Lingyu, including The Goddess (1934) and a film by Cai Chusheng from 1935. It was presented at the Berlin festival. In France, its restored long version was released in cinemas for the first time on 10 April 2024, from Carlotta.
Who it is for
Film of about two and a half hours in its long version, in Cantonese, Mandarin, Shanghainese and English; released in France in 2024.
Prizes and reception
Maggie Cheung received the Silver Bear for Best Actress in Berlin in 1992 for this role, then the same prize at the Golden Horse Awards.