Cinema
Heroic Sons and Daughters
英雄兒女
Wu Zhaodi · 1964
Synopsis
During the Korean War, Wang Cheng, a Chinese volunteer just out of hospital, asks to return to combat and shows the letter from his father, Wang Fubiao. The political commissar Wang Wenqing realises that he is the son of an old comrade from Shanghai, to whom he had entrusted his own daughter before losing track of him. On the way to the front, Wang Cheng finds his sister, Wang Fang, a singer with the arts troupe; the commissar recognises her, but says nothing.
Context
The film is drawn from Retrouvailles, a story by Ba Jin published in 1961; Xia Yan had requested the adaptation from the Changchun studios. It was released across the country in 1964. Its song, the Ode to Heroes, has music by Liu Chi and words by Gong Mu; the voice is that of Zhang Yingzhe, long absent from the credits, according to The Paper. During the Cultural Revolution, the mention of Ba Jin disappeared from the credits. A copy restored in 2K opened in 2020 in Shanghai a festival devoted to films of that conflict.
Who it is for
A film of nearly two hours, openly patriotic; no French release is established.
Prizes and reception
Having become a “red classic”, it is counted among the best-known Chinese films about the Korean conflict.