The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake

竞雄女侠秋瑾

China, 2011, colour, 2.35:1, 115 mins.

Director: Qiu Litao 邱礼涛 [Herman Yau].

Rating: 7/10.

Entertaining action drama on revolutionary martyr Qiu Jin, commandingly played by Huang Yi.

STORY

Anqing, Anhui province, southern China. On 6 Jul 1907, revolutionary Xu Xilin (Du Yuhang), a member of the anti-Manchu Guangfuhui (Restoration Society), assassinates a Manchu official but is captured. Gui Fu (Lin Xue), another Manchu official, is assigned to arrest poet and feminist Qiu Jin (Huang Yi), an associate of Xu Xilin, at her home-cum-training school in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Qiu Jin refuses to flee with her pupils and is only prevented from being killed by Manchu captain Ao Feng (Xiong Xinxin) thanks to the intervention of county magistrate Li Zhonghua (Huang Qiusheng), whose progressive wife, Wu Zhiying (Xia Wenxi), is a close friend of Qiu Jin. At Qiu Jin’s trial, Li Zhonghua functions as her defence counsel, but is unable to prevent her being executed. During her trial, torture and imprisonment, Qiu Jin recalls her past life: refusing to have her feet bound as a child, her education and physical training like a man, her rescue of a mute slave-girl (Chen Jiahuan), her arranged marriage to the conservative Wang Tingjun (Zheng Jiaying), leaving her two children to pursue studies at Tokyo’s Waseda University, and her return to China as a convinced revolutionary to work alongside Xu Xilin.

REVIEW

Pretty much everything that went for The Legend Is Born: Ip Man 叶问前传 also goes for this latest biopic-cum-action drama by Qiu Litao 邱礼涛 [Herman Yau], The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake 竞雄女侠秋瑾, an enjoyable romp through Chinese history of a century ago that doesn’t let too much historical accuracy cramp entertainment values. The good-looking, smartly paced movie is again at the quality end of the prolific Qiu’s spectrum, combining the best of a Hong Kong film-maker’s genre instincts with weightier Mainland material. Given that the subject here is revered feminist-poet-revolutionary Qiu Jin (1875-1907), rather than a martial-arts master, the movie doesn’t have quite the same sense of brawling fun. But while still remaining respectful, it’s a long way from the often stodgy Mainland biopics that have popped up regularly on anniversaries the past 50 years.

Qiu’s film is also the best of a bunch of autumn [2011] movies by Hong Kong directors (using mostly Mainland money) about turn-of-the-century revolutionaries. It’s not as grandiose or self-important as Jackie Chan 成龙 vehicle 1911 辛亥革命, nor as well written or acted as the best bits of 72 Martyrs 英雄喋血 by Zhao Chongji 赵崇基 [Derek Chiu], but it’s often huge fun, moves like an express train, and gives a terrific role to Mainland actress-singer Huang Yi 黄奕, 32, that could potentially re-launch her as an action star.

Looking not too far from the real Qiu Jin – given some glamorous licence – Huang is equally classy in a qipao, kimono or male clothing; dominates the screen against a bevy of Hong Kong veterans (Huang Qiusheng 黄秋生 [Anthony Wong], Xia Wenxi 夏文汐 [Pat Ha], Lin Xue 林雪 [Lam Suet]) and offshore boybanders (Shine duo Xu Tianyou 徐天佑 and Huang Younan 黄又南, and Liu Junwei 刘俊纬 of Taiwan’s Lollipop F 棒棒堂); and acquits herself convincingly in action scenes even versus heavyweights like Xiong Xinxin 熊欣欣 (especially in a nifty, no-holds-barred fight near the start). In quieter moments she has especially good chemistry with both Xia, as her female soulmate, and Huang Qiusheng, good as a sympathetic magistrate.

Produced by a similar team as that behind Legend, led by producer/Yong Chun [Wing Chun] pupil Xian Guolin 冼国林, the film reunites Huang Yi, Hong Kong action star Du Yuhang 杜宇航 (looking less like Zhen Zidan 甄子丹 [Donnie Yen] this time) and young Hong Kong model-actress Chen Jiahuan 陈嘉桓 in a script, also by Li Min 李敏 [Erica Li], that cleverly shuffles their roles. Here, Huang is the proactive lead rather than love interest, Du her platonic revolutionary icon rather than boyfriend, and Chen her devoted maid rather than love rival. With more to go on, Li’s script is stronger this time round, giving due weight to Qiu Jin’s very fine poetry, emphasising how she was a feminist first and revolutionary second, and using an interwoven flashback structure that’s fluid rather than dramatically disruptive.

While naturally beefing up the real Qiu Jin’s interest in martial arts, and not getting too tied up in the complicated politics of the era, the script manages to stick to the broad outlines of her life. However, it won’t please traditional historians and is still Hong Kong Lite compared with the more detailed Qiu Jin: A Revolutionary 秋瑾 (1983), by late Mainland director Xie Jin 谢晋 and starring the more matronly singer-actress Li Xiuming 李秀明.

The English title comes from Qiu Jin’s soubriquet of the time, “The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” 鉴湖女侠, named after a beauty spot near where she lived. The Chinese one roughly means Heroine Qiu Jin, A Match for Any Man.

CREDITS

Presented by Xi’an Mei Ah Culture Communication (CN), Zhejiang Tian Peng Media (CN), National Arts Films Production (CN), Zhejiang Media Holdings Group (CN). Produced by National Arts Films Production (CN).

Script: Li Min [Erica Li]. Photography: Chen Guanghong [Joe Chan], Ni Wenxian. Editing: Zhong Weizhao [Azrael Chung]. Music: Mai Zhenhong [Brother Hung]. Art direction: Chen Jinhe [Raymond Chan]. Costume design: Guo Shumin [Petra Kwok]. Stylist: Yu Jia’an [Bruce Yu]. Sound: Huang Yuanning. Action: Liang Xiaoxiong [Tony Leung Siu-hung]. Martial arts advice: Xian Guolin.

Cast: Huang Yi (Qiu Jin), Du Yuhang (Xu Xilin), Chen Jiahuan (Fusheng, Qiu Jin’s personal maid), Xia Wenxi [Pat Ha] (Wu Zhiying, wife of Li Zhongyue), Huang Qiusheng [Anthony Wong] (Li Zhongyue, county magistrate), Zheng Jiaying (Wang Tingjun, Qiu Jin’s husband), Xiong Xinxin (Ao Feng, Qing captain), Liu Zhaoming (Manchu official), Lin Xue [Lam Suet] (Gui Fu, Qing official), Huang Younan (Chen Boping, Tokyo student), Xu Tianyou (Chen Tianhua, Tokyo student), Liu Junwei (Liu Daoyi, Tokyo student), Yan Qing (Chen Fen), Ding Xiaolong, Zhu Xueliang, Zhu Senlin, Liu Gang, Li Jun, Li Shang, Zhang Zhiwei, Wang Zhiwen, Shi Feng.

Release: China, 13 Oct 2011.

(Review originally published on Film Business Asia, 26 Nov 2011.)