THE KING OF MASKS
Reviewed by Harvey Karten, Ph.D. Samuel Goldwyn Films Director: Wu Tianming Writer: Wei Minglung Cast: Zhu Xu, Zhou Ren-ying, Zhao Zhigang, Zhang Riuyang
Some movies are tearjerkers of the worst sort. "Message in a Bottle" is perhaps the most recent example. Others are heartbreaking. "The King of Masks" is an excellent example of this latter category. Photographed to resemble a landscape painting in a Chinese village meant to be part of that vast country's Sichuan province, director Wu Tianming's uplifting drama of love shared by two outsiders brings to mind the affection between the aging Dora and the orphaned Josue in Walter Salles' Brazilian triumph, "Central Station."
The narrative takes place in the 1930s, during a particularly bleak period of Chinese history; its people ravaged by civil conflict among warlords, incursions by Japan, a rising Communist movement, and natural disasters like floods and droughts. As captured skillfully by photographer Mu Dayuan, scenes render pathetic attempts by poverty-stricken citizens to sell, even give away their children, whom they are no longer able to feed. Male youngsters fare a little better than girls, often able to secure $2 or $3 for their impoverished fathers and mothers, while the fair sex--considered next to worthless in the patriarchal society of its time--are simply given away to anyone with compassion or the wish to put them to work as cooks, perhaps even hookers.
Wei Minglung's screenplay centers on two desperate people: a lonely old man who ekes our a meager living by changing faces, i.e. by managing through sleight of hand to shed and change up to 14 facial masks in a matter of seconds--so quickly that the gathering crowds have no idea how the magic is performed. Since an old tradition requires such people to pass on their secrets to male heirs, the titled king of masks, Bian Lian Wang (Zhu Xu), is despondent: he is alone and lacks the necessary beneficiary. His spirits are raised when the cast-off eight-year-old Doggie (Zhou Ren- Ying) attaches herself to him, but Doggie--who has concealed her gender behind a short haircut--is discovered when asked to urinate into a cloth which is to be used as a poultice.
"The King of Masks" follows the duo, who have by now bonded, as they make the rounds of the village. While Bian, who is known only as "grandpa" or "boss" by his young sidekick, fascinates the crowds, young Doggie assists by announcing each act and, what is more important, serves as the companion so needed by her adopted grandpa. When a series of misfortunes occurs, obliging the king of masks to throw the young girl out of the boat which they call their home, Doggie is ultimately called upon to save her grandfather's life from execution by the authorities--who have accused the old man of kidnapping.
The chief virtue of the film is its realistic portrayal of the growing attachment between two of society's outcasts. Avoiding sloppy sentimentality by presenting a vivid, believable, thoroughly heartfelt drama of unsullied affection between dependent girl and despondent magician, "The King of Masks" headlines an astonishing performance by young Zhou Ren-Ying. Zhou is anything but robotic. Mature well beyond her years (in part, the press notes tell us, because she had to make her own way early on), Zhou was picked for the role because of her experience in show business, having performed from the age of three with an acrobatic troupe in the city of Xian. Not only does Zhou shatter our hearts with her soulful discharge of the role: she does her own stunts. In one particular feat she hangs on a steel cable from a twenty- meter high rooftop, to which she has repaired to get a government official's attention.
In telling the story, director Wu educates film-goers on the conventions of Chinese opera. He cuts several times to performances of a troupe led by the revered diva, Liang Sao Lang (Zhao Zhigang), leaving us with the impression that this Chinese art form shares protocol with Greek and Japanese theater. Liang, in the role of a man who regularly plays a female character, shows his audience in the movie seats that Chinese opera is anything but the bizarre exhibition that Westerners take it to be. By the conclusion of this soulful drama, we are reminded even of King Lear by this king of masks: a man who for a time discards the daughter who loves him the most, ultimately redeemed by an insight he acquires altogether late in the game.
Fortunately for Wu--and for the Chinese people themselves--subjects which would have been taboo under the Communist regime before 1980 (such as Buddhism) are now acceptable in a country that has opened its gates even to controversial American entries. To no one's surprise, "The King of Masks" has acquired top awards in festivals around the world, from Istanbul to Moscow to China itself. The film is in Mandarin with English subtitles.
Not Rated. Running Time: 101 minutes. (C) 1999 Harvey Karten
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