Tweet
Released by: 88 Films
Released on: May 21st, 2024.
Director: Li Han-hsiang
Cast: Chiang Ching, Chao Lei, Chu Mu, Ku Chun
Year: 1965
Purchase From Amazon
Hsi Shih: Beauty Of Beauties – Movie Review:
Directed by Li Han-hsiang shortly after his departure from Shaw Brothers in Hong Kong, 1965’s Hsi Shih: Beauty Of Beauties was, at the time it was made, by far the most expensive and ambitious film to have ever been made in Taiwan.
This period film, set during the Warring States Period of 475-221 B.C., and follows a beautiful young woman named Xishi (or Hsi Shih if you prefer, played by Ching Chiang), one of the 'Four Great Beauties' of Chinese history. The story is set during a war between two feuding kingdoms, with The Kingdom of Yue having been recently bested in battle by The Kingdom Of Wu. King Goujian (Chao Lei), the man in charge of Yue recently imprisoned by Wu but now free, is not resting on his laurels, however, and is planning to exact his revenge on Wu and restore Yue to its former glory.
In order to do this, Goujian recruits Xisi to join the court of Wu and please their King, Fucha (Chu Mu), as one of his concubines. Goujian knows that Fucha has a weakness when it comes to the fairer sex and knows that Xisi will be able to exploit this on this behalf, secretly reporting back to him and essentially working for him as a spy.
It turns out that Goujian’s plan is a good one. Xisi is quickly and enthusiastically accepted by Fucha and proves to be very effective at distracting him from his kingly duties and from properly governing his kingdom. While Fucha is preoccupied with Xisi and her not inconsiderable feminine charms, Fucha takes advantage of his inattentiveness and starts gathering his troops to do what he believes it will take to set things right for The Kingdom of Yue.
The winner of Best Feature Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Color Cinematography and Best Art Firection at the Golden Horse Awards the year it was released, Hsi Shih: Beauty Of Beauties was originally released in two parts but in 1975 was re-edited down from two-hundred and twenty minutes to the version included on this disc, which runs one-hundred and fifty-five minutes. It is, to be blunt, a very long movie and at times, it feels pretty slow but there’s no denying the amount of skill and talent on display here, and it’s a film very much worth seeing for the strength of the visuals alone. The use of color in the film is frequently stunning and the massive sets and huge cast assembled for the film give it a truly epic feel that can’t help but impress.
As far as the performances are concerned, while the movie is rife with the type of melodrama that is common in Chinese cinema from this era, leading lady Ching Chiang impresses. She’s stunning in this film, and that’s only helped by the ornate costume work that was created for her character, but in addition to that her performance is a strong one. Chao Lei and Chu Mu are also quite good as the two warring kings, and there are some solid supporting players at work here as well.
Hsi Shih: Beauty Of Beauties – Blu-ray Review:
Hsi Shih: Beauty of Beauties arrives on 50GB region free Blu-ray from 88 Films presented in AVC encoded 1080p high definition and framed at 2.39.1 widescreen, with the standard Spanish cut using up 16.9GBs of space and the longer export version using 39.4Bs of space. Taken from a “brand new 4K remaster from the original negatives,” the picture quality is pretty strong, if occasionally on the soft side from time to time. There’s excellent detail most scenes, however, while color reproduction varies a bit from scene to scene, sometimes looking perfect and other times looking a bit faded (certainly due to the state of the elements used for the restoration). We get strong black levels and accurate looking flesh tones. The image is basically spotless, retaining natural film grain without showing any real print damage of note. Texture is evident in the costuming on display and there’s good depth to the image as well. No complaints at all, the movie looks really good here.
Audio chores are handled by a 24-bit LPCM 2.0 Mono track in the film’s original Mandarin. Optional subtitle are provided in English only. Audio quality is fine. Some things can and will sound a tad flat but for the most part, the sound is good. Levels are properly balanced and there aren’t any problems with any hiss or distortion to note. There’s some decent depth when it comes to the score.
The main extra on the disc is an interview with ‘Oriental Cinema Expert’ Tony Rayns that runs twenty-two minutes. He goes over why this film's release on home video is an "overdue moment," Li Han-hsiang's biographical details and his importance to cinema, the state of the cinema scene in Shanghai and later in Hong Kong, Shaw Brothers' involvement in all of this and Li Han-hsiang's work for the legendary studio, why he left Shaw Brothers and started his own film company in Taiwan, details on the making of Hsi Shih: Beauty Of Beauties, some of the themes that the film explores, what makes the movie significant as well as where it makes a few missteps, how elegant and epic the movie was compared to what Chinese theatergoers had seen before and what happened to Li Han-hsiang later in his life and career.
The disc also includes an original trailer for the feature, a six minute restoration comparison (which will certainly make you appreciate how the feature presentation looks), menus and chapter selection options.
88 Films has also done a very nice job with the packaging for this release. Not only do we get some reversible cover sleeve art featuring new artwork by Sam Green on one side and the original Hong Kong poster art on the reverse but we also get a limited edition double-walled slipcover showcasing that same artwork from Green and, inside the case, a limited edition, twenty-page full color booklet containing an interesting essay by Tom Cunliffe titled ‘His Shih: The Beauty Of Beauties: A Legendary Production’ that does a nice job of exploring the film’s history.
Hsi Shih: Beauty Of Beauties - The Final Word:
Hsi Shih: Beauty Of Beauties is a truly epic film and a gorgeous picture to look at. It does feel a little long in spots but the good definitely outweighs the bad here, as the acting is solid and the production values are truly impressive. 88 Films has done a really nice job bringing this underseen film to Blu-ray with an excellent presentation and some decent extra features. Recommended!