Confucius (1940 film)
Encyclopedia
Confucius is a 1940 Chinese film
directed by Fei Mu
. Produced during the war, the film was released twice in the 1940s before being thought lost
. In 2001, the film was rediscovered when an anonymous donor sent a damaged copy of the print to the Hong Kong Film Archive
(HKFA). The HKFA then spent seven years restoring the print which was finally screened to modern audiences at the 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival
in April 2009.
The film depicts Confucius
's later life, as he traveled across a China divided by war and strife in an ultimately futile effort to teach various warlords and kings his particular philosophy
.
and Kenji Mizoguchi
Fei hoped the film, with its philosophical message, would appeal to a war-ravaged populace. Unfortunately, despite the film's large budget and impressive production values for the time, the film's original release in late 1940 and early 1941 was a box-office failure. A recut version was released after the war in 1948, though Fei had denounced this version of his film. For the next several decades, Fei Mu's original vision of Confucius was thought to be lost.
(HKFA) received a package from an anonymous donor consisting of several original reels of Fei Mu's lost film. Over the course of the next seven years, the HKFA painstakingly restored the film, which had suffered heavily in the intervening years, with the soundtrack liquefied in several scenes. In 2009, restorers were finally ready to present the film to a new generation of moviegoers. A working print screened at the 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival
in April 2009. It is believed that the copy received by the HKFA was of the recut version from 1948, and restoration efforts are ongoing in an attempt to integrate fragments of Fei Mu's original vision from 1940.
Cinema of China
The Chinese-language cinema has three distinct historical threads: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China, and Cinema of Taiwan. Since 1949 the cinema of mainland China has operated under restrictions imposed by the Communist Party of China's State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television and...
directed by Fei Mu
Fei Mu
Fei Mu was a major Chinese film director from the pre-Communist era.-Biography:Born in Shanghai, China, Fei Mu is considered by many to be one of the major film directors prior to the communist revolution in 1949...
. Produced during the war, the film was released twice in the 1940s before being thought lost
Lost film
A lost film is a feature film or short film that is no longer known to exist in studio archives, private collections or public archives such as the Library of Congress, where at least one copy of all American films are deposited and catalogued for copyright reasons...
. In 2001, the film was rediscovered when an anonymous donor sent a damaged copy of the print to the Hong Kong Film Archive
Hong Kong Film Archive
Hong Kong Film Archive is located at 50 Lei King Road, Sai Wan Ho, Hong Kong .It was opened in January 2001 and it is now under the management of Leisure and Cultural Service Department...
(HKFA). The HKFA then spent seven years restoring the print which was finally screened to modern audiences at the 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival
Hong Kong International Film Festival
The Hong Kong International Film Festival is a platform for filmmakers, film professionals and filmgoers from all over the world to launch and experience new film work. There are seminars, conferences, exhibitions, and parties celebrating the festival community...
in April 2009.
The film depicts Confucius
Confucius
Confucius , literally "Master Kong", was a Chinese thinker and social philosopher of the Spring and Autumn Period....
's later life, as he traveled across a China divided by war and strife in an ultimately futile effort to teach various warlords and kings his particular philosophy
Confucianism
Confucianism is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system developed from the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius . Confucianism originated as an "ethical-sociopolitical teaching" during the Spring and Autumn Period, but later developed metaphysical and cosmological elements in the Han...
.
Initial release
Confucius was produced and released during the waning days of the Orphan Island or Solitary Island period of Chinese cinema, a period where Shanghai studios still maintained some semblance of independence from Japanese occupiers. The film also marked a new artistic phase for Fei Mu. While earlier films had been marked by fluidity, Confucius was consciously slow-moving and the images often symmetrical, a style that reflected contemporaries such as Sergei EisensteinSergei Eisenstein
Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein , né Eizenshtein, was a pioneering Soviet Russian film director and film theorist, often considered to be the "Father of Montage"...
and Kenji Mizoguchi
Kenji Mizoguchi
Kenji Mizoguchi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. His film Ugetsu won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and appeared in the Sight & Sound Critics' Top Ten Poll in 1962 and 1972. Mizoguchi is renowned for his mastery of the long take and mise-en-scène...
Fei hoped the film, with its philosophical message, would appeal to a war-ravaged populace. Unfortunately, despite the film's large budget and impressive production values for the time, the film's original release in late 1940 and early 1941 was a box-office failure. A recut version was released after the war in 1948, though Fei had denounced this version of his film. For the next several decades, Fei Mu's original vision of Confucius was thought to be lost.
Rediscovery and restoration
In 2001 the Hong Kong Film ArchiveHong Kong Film Archive
Hong Kong Film Archive is located at 50 Lei King Road, Sai Wan Ho, Hong Kong .It was opened in January 2001 and it is now under the management of Leisure and Cultural Service Department...
(HKFA) received a package from an anonymous donor consisting of several original reels of Fei Mu's lost film. Over the course of the next seven years, the HKFA painstakingly restored the film, which had suffered heavily in the intervening years, with the soundtrack liquefied in several scenes. In 2009, restorers were finally ready to present the film to a new generation of moviegoers. A working print screened at the 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival
Hong Kong International Film Festival
The Hong Kong International Film Festival is a platform for filmmakers, film professionals and filmgoers from all over the world to launch and experience new film work. There are seminars, conferences, exhibitions, and parties celebrating the festival community...
in April 2009. It is believed that the copy received by the HKFA was of the recut version from 1948, and restoration efforts are ongoing in an attempt to integrate fragments of Fei Mu's original vision from 1940.
External links
- Confucius at the Chinese Movie Database