Dawn Will Come (1966)
The lovely Li Hsiang-chun stars as a poor beauty who is drugged, ravished, lied to, locked in a burning store room, left to drown, and chased by sword-wielding ruffians, among other things. Her only hope is her betrayer's new wife, played by the strong and sensual Ivy Ling Po. Dawn may come, but the questions is: will it be too late? Director/writer Kao Li shows both restraint and sadism in this historical melodramatic tearjerker.
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How sad is this?
All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.
One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.