Ma-Xu Weibang
Encyclopedia
Ma-Xu Weibang (1905–1961) was a Chinese
film director
active in the mainland during the 1920s through 1940s, and later in Hong Kong
, perhaps best known for his work in the horror genre, the most important unarguably being the Phantom of the Opera-inspired, Song at Midnight
. Ma-Xu was also known for a few acting roles early in his career, as well as for being a screenwriter. The director of 33 known films, much of Ma-Xu's early work has been lost.
Ma-Xu was born Xu Weibang in 1905 in Hangzhou
, Zhejiang
. Little is known of this early period except that his parents died while Ma-Xu was still a child, which was said to influence his decision to incorporate his wife's surname, "Ma".
, his first film being Zhang Shichuan's The Marriage Trap in 1924. Following a brief stint in the short-lived Langhua Film Company where he directed his first film in 1926, Ma-Xu returned to Mingxing where he began serving as assistant directors for some of the more established talent. His thriller, The Cry of Apes in a Deserted Valley is the only one of these directorial efforts to have survived.
Ma-Xu's first real success, however, did not come until 1937 with Song at Midnight
, often referred to as China's first horror film
. Based on Gaston Leroux
's classic novel, the film is now seen as part of the canon of early Chinese cinema, and was also remade as The Phantom Lover
by Ronny Yu
in 1996. Ma-Xu followed up Song with two additional horror films, Walking Corpse in an Old House (1938) and The Lonely Soul (1938). In 1941, he made a lackluster sequel to Song at Midnight (during the height of the war with Japan), and also co-directed with Bu Wancang the controversial Japanese propaganda film Eternity (also known as The Opium War).
Like Bu, Ma-Xu suffered for his work on The Opium War after the Japanese were defeated and was eventually forced to move to Hong Kong where he continued to work in the film business until 1961, when he was killed in a road accident.
Chinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
film director
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...
active in the mainland during the 1920s through 1940s, and later in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, perhaps best known for his work in the horror genre, the most important unarguably being the Phantom of the Opera-inspired, Song at Midnight
Song at Midnight
Song at Midnight is a 1937 film directed by Ma-Xu Weibang...
. Ma-Xu was also known for a few acting roles early in his career, as well as for being a screenwriter. The director of 33 known films, much of Ma-Xu's early work has been lost.
Ma-Xu was born Xu Weibang in 1905 in Hangzhou
Hangzhou
Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...
, Zhejiang
Zhejiang
Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...
. Little is known of this early period except that his parents died while Ma-Xu was still a child, which was said to influence his decision to incorporate his wife's surname, "Ma".
Career in film
Ma-Xu studied at the Shanghai Institute of Fine Arts in the early 1920s. Following his graduation, he began working as an actor for the Mingxing Film CompanyMingxing Film Company
Mingxing Film Company was one of the largest Chinese production companies during the 1920s, and 1930s in Shanghai and Hong Kong. The company lasted from 1922 until 1937 when it was closed permanently by the Second Sino-Japanese War.-History:...
, his first film being Zhang Shichuan's The Marriage Trap in 1924. Following a brief stint in the short-lived Langhua Film Company where he directed his first film in 1926, Ma-Xu returned to Mingxing where he began serving as assistant directors for some of the more established talent. His thriller, The Cry of Apes in a Deserted Valley is the only one of these directorial efforts to have survived.
Ma-Xu's first real success, however, did not come until 1937 with Song at Midnight
Song at Midnight
Song at Midnight is a 1937 film directed by Ma-Xu Weibang...
, often referred to as China's first horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
. Based on Gaston Leroux
Gaston Leroux
Gaston Louis Alfred Leroux was a French journalist and author of detective fiction.In the English-speaking world, he is best known for writing the novel The Phantom of the Opera , which has been made into several film and stage productions of the same name, notably the 1925 film starring Lon...
's classic novel, the film is now seen as part of the canon of early Chinese cinema, and was also remade as The Phantom Lover
The Phantom Lover
The Phantom Lover is a 1995 Hong Kong film starring Leslie Cheung and Jacqueline Wu. It was directed by Ronnie Yu and is a remake of the 1937 film Song at Midnight. The film itself is a loose adaptation of the classic Romeo and Juliet romance where love between two passionate lovers were...
by Ronny Yu
Ronny Yu
Ronny Yu Yan-Tai is a Hong Kong director, producer, and movie writer. Yu was born in Hong Kong and graduated from Ohio University. He has worked on both Hong Kong and American films.- Career :...
in 1996. Ma-Xu followed up Song with two additional horror films, Walking Corpse in an Old House (1938) and The Lonely Soul (1938). In 1941, he made a lackluster sequel to Song at Midnight (during the height of the war with Japan), and also co-directed with Bu Wancang the controversial Japanese propaganda film Eternity (also known as The Opium War).
Like Bu, Ma-Xu suffered for his work on The Opium War after the Japanese were defeated and was eventually forced to move to Hong Kong where he continued to work in the film business until 1961, when he was killed in a road accident.
Filmography
Note: in most early Chinese films, there often were no official English translations, leading to a sometimes confusing lack of consistency in titles.| Year | English Title | Chinese Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 1926 in film -Events:*August - Warner Brothers debuts the first Vitaphone film, Don Juan. The Vitaphone system used multiple 33⅓ rpm disc records developed by Bell Telephone Laboratories and Western Electric to play back audio synchronized with film.... |
The Love Freak | Qing chang guai ren | Presumed 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... |
| 1928 1928 in film -Events:Although some movies released in 1928 had sound, most were still silent.* July 28 - Lights of New York is released by Warner Brothers. It is the first "100% Talkie" feature film, in that dialog is spoken throughout the film... |
Freak in the Night | Hei ye guai ren | Presumed 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... |
| 1929 1929 in film -Events:The days of the silent film are numbered. A mad scramble to provide synchronized sound is on.*January 20 - The movie In Old Arizona is released. The film is the first full-length talking film to be filmed outdoors.... |
The Devil Incarnate | Hun shi mo wang | Presumed 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... |
| 1930 1930 in film -Events:* November 1: The Big Trail featuring a young John Wayne in his first starring role is released in both 35mm, and a very early form of 70mm film and was the first large scale big-budget film of the sound era costing over $2 million. The film was praised for its aesthetic quality and realism... |
The Cry of Apes in a Deserted Valley | Kong gu yuan sheng | |
| 1934 1934 in film -Events:*January 26 - Samuel Goldwyn purchases the film rights to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from the L. Frank Baum estate for $40,000.*February 19 - Bob Hope marries Dolores Reade... |
Pear Blossom in the Storm | 暴雨梨花 | Presumed 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... |
| 1934 1934 in film -Events:*January 26 - Samuel Goldwyn purchases the film rights to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from the L. Frank Baum estate for $40,000.*February 19 - Bob Hope marries Dolores Reade... |
Prison of Love | Ai yu | Presumed 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... |
| 1935 1935 in film -Events:*Judy Garland signs a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer .*Seven year old Shirley Temple wins a special Academy Award.*The Bantu Educational Kinema Experiment started in order to educate the Bantu peoples.-Top grossing films:-Academy Awards:... |
Han jiang luo yan | ||
| 1937 1937 in film The year 1937 in film involved some significant events, including the Walt Disney production of the first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.- Events :*April 16 - Way Out West premieres in the US.... |
Song at Midnight Song at Midnight Song at Midnight is a 1937 film directed by Ma-Xu Weibang... |
夜半歌声 | |
| 1938 1938 in film The year 1938 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*January — MGM announces that Judy Garland would be cast in the role of "Dorothy" in the upcoming Wizard of Oz motion picture. Ray Bolger is cast as the "Tinman" and Buddy Ebsen is cast as the "Scarecrow". At Bolger's insistence,... |
Walking Corpse in an Old House | Gu wu xing shi ji | |
| 1938 1938 in film The year 1938 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*January — MGM announces that Judy Garland would be cast in the role of "Dorothy" in the upcoming Wizard of Oz motion picture. Ray Bolger is cast as the "Tinman" and Buddy Ebsen is cast as the "Scarecrow". At Bolger's insistence,... |
The Lonely Soul | Leng yue shi hun | |
| 1939 1939 in film The year 1939 in motion pictures can be justified as being called the most outstanding one ever, when it comes to the high quality and high attendance at the large set of the best films that premiered in the year .- Events :Motion picture historians and film often rate... |
Ma feng nu | 麻疯女 | |
| 1940 1940 in film The year 1940 in film involved some significant events, including the premieres of the Walt Disney classics Pinocchio and Fantasia.-Events:*February 7 - Walt Disney's animated film Pinocchio is released.... |
Diao Liu shi | ||
| 1941 1941 in film The year 1941 in film involved some significant events.-Events:Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the greatest films of all time, was released in 1941.-Top grossing films :-Academy Awards:... |
Song at Midnight, Part II | 夜半歌声续继 | |
| 1941 1941 in film The year 1941 in film involved some significant events.-Events:Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the greatest films of all time, was released in 1941.-Top grossing films :-Academy Awards:... |
Xian dai qing nian | ||
| 1942 1942 in film The year 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Casablanca.-Events:... |
Yuan yang lei | ||
| 1943 1943 in film The year 1943 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 3 - 1st missing persons telecast * February 20 - American film studio executives agree to allow the Office of War Information to censor films.... |
Eternity | 万世流芳 | |
| 1943 1943 in film The year 1943 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 3 - 1st missing persons telecast * February 20 - American film studio executives agree to allow the Office of War Information to censor films.... |
Qiu Haitang | ||
| 1947 1947 in film The year 1947 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 22 - Great Expectations is premiered in New York.*November 24 : The United States House of Representatives of the 80th Congress voted 346 to 17 to approve citations for contempt of Congress against the "Hollywood Ten".*November 25... |
Tian luo di wang | ||
| 1947 1947 in film The year 1947 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 22 - Great Expectations is premiered in New York.*November 24 : The United States House of Representatives of the 80th Congress voted 346 to 17 to approve citations for contempt of Congress against the "Hollywood Ten".*November 25... |
Chun can meng duan | 春残梦断 | |
| 1949 1949 in film The year 1949 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:*Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello... |
Mei yan qin wang | ||
| 1949 1949 in film The year 1949 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:*Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello... |
A Maid's Bitter Story | 琼楼恨 | Also known as The Haunted House |
| 1954 1954 in film The year 1954 in film involved some significant events and memorable ones.-Events:*May 12 - The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx divorces wife Marion Benda... |
Blood Stained Flowers | Bi xue huang hua | |
| 1955 1955 in film The year 1955 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* November 3 - The musical Guys and Dolls, starring Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra, debuts.* June 27 - The last ever Republic serial, King of the Carnival, is released.... |
Xin yu guang qu | ||
| 1956 1956 in film The year 1956 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 5 - The Ten Commandments opens in cinemas and becomes one of the most successful and popular movies of all time, currently ranking 5th on the list of all time moneymakers * February 5 - First showing of documentary films by... |
Wo xin chang dan | ||
| 1956 1956 in film The year 1956 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 5 - The Ten Commandments opens in cinemas and becomes one of the most successful and popular movies of all time, currently ranking 5th on the list of all time moneymakers * February 5 - First showing of documentary films by... |
Ghost at Midnight | 午夜魂归 | Also known as Foggy Night, Fright Night |
| 1957 1957 in film The year 1957 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 21 - The movie Jailhouse Rock, starring Elvis Presley, opens.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue-Awards:... |
The Resurrected Rose | Fu huo de mei gui | |
| 1957 1957 in film The year 1957 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 21 - The movie Jailhouse Rock, starring Elvis Presley, opens.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue-Awards:... |
Booze, Boobs, and Bucks | 酒色财气 | |
| 1958 1958 in film The year 1958 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 16- "In the Money" by William Beaudine is released on this date. It would be the last installment of The Bowery Boys series which began back in 1946.... |
Young Vagabond | 流浪儿 | Also known as The Vagabond Boy |
| 1958 1958 in film The year 1958 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 16- "In the Money" by William Beaudine is released on this date. It would be the last installment of The Bowery Boys series which began back in 1946.... |
Hong fu si ben | ||
| 1959 1959 in film The year 1959 in film involved some significant events, with Ben-Hur winning a record 11 Academy Awards.-Events:* The Three Stooges make their 190th and last short film, Sappy Bull Fighters.... |
The Lovers and the Python | 毒蟒情鸳 | |
External links
- Ma-Xu Weibang at the Chinese Movie Database