Shanghai Triad was director Zhang Yimou's seventh feature film. Zhang's previous film, "To Live" had landed the director in trouble with Chinese authorities, and he was temporarily banned from making any films funded from overseas sources. Shanghai Triad was therefore only allowed to continue production after it was officially categorized as local production. The director has since noted that his selection of Shanghai Triad to follow up the politically controversial To Live was no accident, as he hoped that a "gangster movie" would be a conventional film.
The actress Gong Li collaborated with Zhang Yimou for six films from 1988 Red Sorghum to 1995 Shanghai Triad and Gong Li was basically his mistress until 1995 when she suddenly broke off the relationship and married a wealthy Singaporean businessman less than a year later. As a matter of fact her role as Xiao Jinbao the nighclub singer is married to the wealthy Old mafia leader just for wealth, and during the press conference a journalist asked her if she felt related to her character, and ofcourse it ended with Gong Li crying and the journalist was told to be quiet. The rest of the cast is Wang Xiao Xiao who play the role of Tang Shuisheng, the young teenage boy who serves as the film's protagonist and he falls under the spell of the boss's mistress, Jinbao. Sun Chun as Song, the 2nd in command in the organisation and a love affair to Jinbao. And as the rome of Tangs ruthless boss is played by Li Baotian.
1930s Shanghai, a young pesant boy Tang has been recruted by his uncle to work as a servant for a singer Jinbao, who is the mistress of the boss of a crime/family organisation. Jinbao is very cold and spoiled as she is very beautiful, she is rude to her servants and unfaithful with the 2nd in command Song. Then one day, her nightclub is attacked by a rival crime group and Tang have to move from Shanghai to the countryside with his boss and Jinbao and the rest of the organisation to hide. While there, Jinbao and Tang get to know each other, and later both of them become friend with a pesant woman and her daughter. Thanks to them Jinbao learn a new meaning of life but unfortunately she also learn that the boss she married is not just a tired old man, but a ruthless and more darker soul then anyone could imagine, and it doesn't take long for Jinbao to whitness how evil the crime boss really is.
Shanghai Triad is known as one of the greatest classic movies and rightly so. The plot shows how far people can go with greed. Jinbao is greedy for fame and to get what she wants. The boss is greedy for power and control. Tang however is not greedy but his uncle is who force Tang to work as a servant for the crime boss mistress so his family can have a bright future.
The only problem with the movie is that it never show any comic relief or any sign of goodness in people, well except from the pesant family who show alot of happiness that make your heart melt, but even that ends with sorrow. And because of that, this movie is one of those great movies that I don't wish to go back too.
But part from the sad story, the color, technical quality and acting are all wonderful to watch. Gong Li is making an exellent performance as Jinbao, and Zhang Yimou shows With his directing why he is one of the greatest directors of all time.
I give this movie a 8.5/10, an A class crime drama that still looks new after 10 years.
- Xu Liang
