SHANGHAI TRIAD
A film review by Eric Y. Yap
Copyright 1996 Eric Y. Yap
After tackling the foibles of modern Chinese bureaucracy and the experiences of ordinary lives toiling under Communist rule, director Zhang Yimou returns to the pre-Communist era in his latest release, "Shanghai Triad". Set in the 1930's, the movie traces a week in the life of one of the notorious Shanghai triads or gangs, as seen through the eyes of a 14 year-old boy, Tang Shuisheng (Wang Xiaoxiao). The Shanghai gangs have long been a favorite topic of Hong Kong film makers as they present a complete package of the important elements one would expect in a Hong Kong action flick: gangsters, glamorous women, and revenge. Zhang's understated version does not seek to compete with his high-octane counterparts which are replete with bloody violence, sex, and stunts galore. The film's focus is not on the gangs themselves, but the system the represent: notably, the original Chinese title of the movie contains neither "Shanghai" nor "Triad" but is instead the title of a simple children's song. "Shanghai Triad" returns to familiar themes sounded by Zhang's earlier works, such as the loss of innocence, and entrapment in a system from which there is no escape.
The movie unfolds through the eyes of Shuisheng, a simple country boy who comes to Shanghai with the simple ambition of earning enough money to open a tofu store back home. His Sixth Uncle (Liu Xuejian) who has arranged his placement with the triad, soon impresses upon him that there are a hundred country bumpkins who are dying to take his place. Shuisheng has great opportunities in front of him, and if he would only put in his time, he could "become somebody", presumably like Sixth Uncle himself. Yet while Sixth Uncle is a know-it-all, and almost arrogant in front of Shuisheng, he is transformed into a totally subservient, cowering lackey before the Boss of the gang (Li Baotian). Sixth Uncle will do anything and everything for the Boss, from chauffering the Boss and his women around, to delivering contraband, to acting as a bodyguard. Between these two extreme postures of arrogance and subservience, however, is a man ruing opportunities lost, one who wonders how he has come to be trapped in a stagnant position with no chance of ever advancing.
Shuisheng's assignment with the triad is to serve Xiao Jinbao (Gong Li), a glamorous singer in a club who doubles as mistress to the Boss. Xiao Jinbao initially appears haughty, petulent, and prone to excesses. She derides Shuisheng's rural origins, and ridicules his ignorance. But as the movie progresses, and as the protective layers slowly peel off, it is revealed that she too comes from the same humble origins, knows the same rural songs, and finds solace in the company of simple country folk.
Xiao Jinbao exudes the frustrations of country-turned-city-girl who has come to depend on the material luxuries afforded by her relationship with the Boss. While addicted to the wealth and comfort, she longs to break free from her appointed role as mistress and is wiling to take surprising risks to reach her dream. As the film unfolds, and Xiao Jinbao gets in touch with her former simple country roots, her warm, generous side, as well as the emptiness and loneliness of her current existence begin to shine through. This poses an important but perhaps unanswerable question, especially in light of Zhang Yimou's other works set in the pre-Communist era: would a woman like Xiao Jinbao have felt any less trapped had she remained in the tradition-bound countryside, or has she escaped one trap only to walk straight into the jaws of another? Towards the end of the film, we get a haunting glimpse of how Xiao Jinbao's entanglement with the triad probably began, when an innocent and unsuspecting 9 year-old girl is initiated into the gang, starting a new life in Xiao Jinbao's footsteps along a materially rich yet spiritually empty path.
On its surface, "Shanghai Triad" is about life in the gangs, but with its downplaying of violence, there are no compelling villians. The Boss could pass as another rich, shrewd, successful businessman, living in an opulent mansion, striking deals over games of mahjong, knowing how to entertain and how to enjoy the company of women. Violence to him is simply a means to an end, a business necessity. The triad's most compelling characteristic isn't evil, or its lawlessness, but rather its function as a System with a rigid code of behavior and a million pairs of prying eyes and ears to enforce it. Because this strict code of behavior and of ethical obligation so pervades the triad, the worst imaginable behavior is to breach that trust: to steal your compatriot's woman, to conspire with someone outside the fraternity, to attempt to leave the gang. As in any totalitarian regime, these infractions never go unnoticed, nor unpunished.
This snapshot of life within the triad suggests that Shuisheng's turbulent first seven days are no more significant than any other seven days. The Boss suppresses dissent, the turf wars continue, and more blood is shed, but the System barely skips a beat. New Bosses will emerge, even more powerful, even more power-hungry. And the children, Shuisheng and the little girl, will end up as another subservient Sixth Uncle and another frustrated Xiao Jinbao -- and prove equally expendable. They cannot escape the fate of their predecessors, and as in any other System, there will always be someone to take their place when they fall. "Shanghai Triad" may use brighter colors, more music and dance, and the backdrop of urban, bustling Shanghai, but ultimately it echoes the themes of Zhang Yimou's earlier works: we are trapped in a society which values the system more than the individual, and we are trapped also by the forces of history, which keep recurring in an endless vicious cycle.
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews