Pavilion of Women (2001)

You won't be disappointed!

People are voting emotionally.

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Well, I grant you that the film could have been much better with Chinese dialog, but since I do not speak Chinese, English worked fine for me. I found the colorite of the periode just great. Costumes, interior, culture - but than again - I'm not Chinese and are probably not able to see the flaws and am very happy for it. I liked the film, that I by chance came by, and would not have seen if my sister had not tipped my off. I found that it was portraying the eara between old and new time quite believable as it take place around the Japanese invation of China. The lead man is an American and the one bringing change with him. The female lead is a strong Chinese lady who plays her role most brilliantly. The only drawback that I could see was the end that was too yacky for me knowing what Mao did to his country in the years that followed. If you like films about China this one could well be your thing.

Good god has no one read the book? It talks of a woman who wakes up on her fortieth birthday determined to break herself free from her duties to her family but without hurting anyone. This sets off a series of events she had not foreseen and does not know how to tackle. All this is set in a period when China was changing. It is a brilliant story of spiritual awakening. And what have they done to it?The missionary and the lady never even touch each other before he dies. In fact she doesn't even know that she loves him until that point. The son does not settle down with his father's concubine. And the woman does not turn communist, but becomes free in the true meaning of the word.It just beats me how any one could dare to call this movie by the name of the book. Blasphemous!

Somehow I always feel that Willem Dafoe and the films he starrs in are drastically underrated. It is also the case for this exceptional movie set in pre-comunist China. A simple, touching story about tradition and the constrains that it sometimes brings. The plot outline is simple. When Ailin turns 40, she decides it is time to retire from her husband's bed, the rich Mr. Wu. In order to do so, she finds a second wife, a woman that would take her place and pleasure the oral-sex-obsessed Mr. Wu. But the young new wife has trouble adapting to her role and the old pervert is not satisfied with her. Meanwhile, Ailin befriends her son's teacher, an American priest named Andre (Willem Dafoe). From here on, the story develops in various directions but I don't want to spoil it for you.Very good acting and directing on a classical subject.

I could not believe how lousy this film was and I tried to think why. Well its co-made by China and a United States film studio and I think thats where the trouble lies. Its americanized. No original angle or aspect into the chinese people. All the characters are one dimensional and act on the most basic of emotions. Only actress Luo Yan has a few decent moments but the rest is all hokey nonsense. It plays out like a mediocre mini-series and I kept expecting one of two things to happen. Either Richard Chamberlain was going to stumble in OR the characters were going to burst into song and sing "Getting to Know You". The last half hour is so overly dramatic that it puts daytime soaps to shame. Bad filmmaking!