Song of the Fishermen
| Song of the Fishermen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Traditional Chinese | 漁光曲 |
| Simplified Chinese | 渔光曲 |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Yú guāng qǔ |
| Directed by | Cai Chusheng |
| Written by | Cai Chusheng |
| Starring | Wang Renmei, Luo Peng, Yuan Congmei, Han Langen |
Production company | |
Release date |
|
Running time | 57 minutes |
| Country | China |
| Language | Silent with Chinese intertitles |
Song of the Fishermen is an early Chinese silent film directed by Cai Chusheng in 1934, and produced by the Lianhua Film Company. The film, like many of the period, details the struggle of the poorer classes, in this case a family of fishermen who are forced to sing on the streets in order to survive.
A successful film, Song of the Fishermen played for 84 straight days in Shanghai.[1] It was the first Chinese film to win a prize in an international film festival (Moscow Film Festival in 1935).[2]
Plot Summary[edit]
Fisherman Xu Fu has a pair of twin children, Xiaomao and Xiaohou. Xu Fu perished in a storm while fishing at sea. To repay the debts, their mother, Madam Xu, had no choice but to leave her children and become a wet nurse for the He family, the owners of the fishing fleet. Unfortunately, she accidentally broke an antique and was dismissed, soon after which she lost her sight. The He family's young master, Ziying, grew up with Xiaomao and Xiaohou, and they became close friends.
Ten years later, Xiaomao and Xiaohou are still renting the He family's fishing boats to fish, while Ziying is preparing to study abroad, majoring in fisheries. Before his departure, the three friends gather, and He Ziying vows to return and reform the Chinese fishing industry. After Ziying leaves, He Renzhai, in partnership with foreigners, establishes a fishing company, further worsening the Xu family's living conditions. Unable to sustain their livelihood through fishing, they return the boat and move to Shanghai to live with their uncle. In Shanghai, Xiaomao and Xiaohou earn a living by singing on the streets under their uncle's guidance. During one of their performances, they encounter the returned He Ziying, who, out of sympathy, gives them 100 yuan. However, this money leads to the siblings being falsely accused of robbery and imprisoned. After their release, a fire breaks out in the Xu household, claiming the lives of Madam Xu and their uncle, leaving Xiaomao and Xiaohou homeless.
The siblings return to their hometown to resume fishing. Meanwhile, due to the manager embezzling funds and fleeing, the He family's fishing company goes bankrupt, leading to He Renzhai's suicide. He Ziying abandons his ambitions and joins Xiaomao and Xiaohou on their fishing boat. Tragically, the frail Xiaohou is severely injured on the boat and lies on the brink of death. In his final moments, Xiaohou requests his sister to sing "Song of the Fishermen" for him one last time.
Director[edit]
Born Jan 12th 1906, Cai Chusheng was one of the foremost progressive Chinese directors of his time. Song of the Fishermen, one of his most critically acclaimed films, allowed him to become the first Chinese director to win an international award during the Moscow International Film Festival in 1935[3].
Ever since he had begun developing his skill for playwriting, Chusheng had been involved in the social rights movements of his time, like his involvement in the workers' union in China at the age of just 19[4]. Subsequently, as we see in Song of the Fishermen as well, many of the films part of his larger body of work frequently delve into societal issues present in China during the early 20th Century, namely New Women (1935) and Dawn over the Metropolis (1933).
Cultural Impact[edit]
Song of the Fishermen undoubtedly marked a milestone for Chinese cinema at the time, becoming the first Chinese film to win an international award at the 1935 Moscow International Film Festival[3]. It was a revolutionary take on the traditional Chinese opera form, choosing to adopt a more bleak tone, slower overall rhythms, and an overall more realistic approach to making the film. Song of the Fishermen went on to inspire a whole series of left-wing realist films following its release.
Beyond just its artistic achievements, Song of the Fishermen brought nearly unprecedented commercial success along with it. It ran for 87 days straight upon release[5], with the first round of screenings at the Jincheng Theatre lasting for more than 40 days. This level of success eventually rendered it the most profitable Chinese film of the 1930s[6].
References[edit]
- ^ MoMA staff. "Bright Stars, Big City: Chinese Cinema's First Golden Era, 1922–1937". MOMA. Retrieved 2007-08-25.
- ^ David Carter (2010). East Asian Cinema. Kamera Books. ISBN 9781842433805.
- ^ a b Pickowicz, Paul. "Victory as Defeat: Postwar Visualizations of China's War of Resistance." Becoming Chinese: Passages to Modernity and Beyond, ed. Wen-Hsin Yeh. University of California Press (2000).
- ^ "The Second Generation of Chinese Directors". en.chinaculture.org. Retrieved 2024-06-11.
- ^ Shen, Vivian. The Origins of Left-Wing Cinema in China: 1932-1937. Routledge (2005).
- ^ "Song of the Fishermen 漁光曲 (1934)". Chinese Film Classics. Retrieved 2024-06-11.
External links[edit]
- Song of the Fishermen is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive
- Song of the Fishermen at IMDb
- Song of the Fishermen at the Chinese Cinema Web-based learning center at UCSD
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