Review of Farewell My Concubine (1993) by Ashley G — 07 Mar 2008

Although the movie is very long, I never really got bored or tired of it. It was interesting to see how actors of this period had to deal with the changing political and social climate. Cheung's performance was spot on, as well as Fengyi Zhang's and Li Gong's.

You couldn't help but feel for the characters, especially Cheung's character, Dieyi. The feelings he had for his stage brother were never reciprocated, and their relationship was complicated. His life became intertwined with the theater, and the lines between his portrayal of Concubine Yu and his actual life were blurred.

It's heartbreaking to know that his portrayal of Yu at the end of the movie, was so closely related to Leslie Cheung's real life. I highly recommend this movie.