The late Anita Mui showcases her acting talent as the titular Chinese-born Japanese spy in World War II, with a stellar supporting cast including Andy Lau and Derek Yee. While many find the film slow-paced and boring, it ultimately shows the acting range of the stars in really good fashion.
1948, China. World War II had ended three years ago and the news of a spy on trial has hit the newspapers. Kawashima Yoshiko, also known as Kam Bik-Fai (Anita Mui) is on trial for treason against the Chinese. As Kawashima Yoshiko awaits her fate, her story is told.
Kawashima Yoshiko was born Aisin Gioro Xianyu, the 14th daughter of Emperor Shanqi. At the age of eight, she is adopted by the Emperor’s Japanese friend Kawashima Naniwa. At the age of seventeen, she was forced into a marriage to Mongolian prince Ganjuurab. However, she had strong feelings for Japanese officer Amakasu (Derek Yee). When her adopted father rapes her, she begins to dress like a man and let no man touch her.
In an attempt to restore Manchuria and Manchukuo, Yoshiko became an officer in the military. However, to cover her tracks, she would play both sides of the field. During her military regime, she used her charms as trickery towards the last Empress Wan Jung (Ida Chan), going as far as blackmailing her to return to the kingdom in exchange for keeping quiet about a lesbian affair between the two. She even shows admiration for Peking opera performer Cloud (Andy Lau). However, as the war rages on, her cover soon is blown from both sides. Ultimately, she will not find her way out of this and suffers the consequences of her actions.
Based on the true story of Asia’s “Mata Hari”, this is quite an interesting film to say the least. While many may find the film to be somewhat slow and dragging, it is the performances of the actors involve that help drive it and may make one really get into it. The late Anita Mui, after her career defining performance in the 1988 film ROUGE, proves that her acting is no fluke as she does well as the titular Kawashima Yoshiko. She plays Kawashima as both a woman scorned by love and one who uses her looks and charms to get her way, yet she plays for both the Japanese and Chinese during the war.
The film also has a subplot which could be translated as a love triangle between Yoshiko and two men. She has strong feelings for Japanese soldier Akamasu, played by future Hong Kong auteur Derek Yee. However, when he learns she must marry a Mongolian prince, he sort of releases his jealousy and anger by always drinking and sleeping around with other women. This, in turn, fuels jealousy out of Yoshiko, who didn’t truly love her husband, but still felt love towards the soldier and eventual right hand man of General Tanaka during the war.
The other man Yoshiko eventually shows her feelings for is that of Cloud, played by Andy Lau. Also known as “Ah Fook”, Lau’s character is an actor whose first scene is basically the only hand-to-hand combat fight of the film. When Yoshiko is robbed in Shanghai, Cloud comes to her rescue and retrieves her purse. When she learns that he is the performer at the theater, she uses her looks and charms to coerce him into joining her for the war effort. Ultimately, she hopes for Cloud to become loyal to the Japanese and he refuses to become a traitor.
In the end, you will either love or hate KAWASHIMA YOSHIKO. If you love to see three performers at the top of their acting game, then you will like this film as their performances drive the film. However, some may feel that the film is all slow paced and boring. Ultimately, the choice is up to the viewer.
AlbertV’s Rating: B
Rated Cat. II (Hong Kong equivalent of a PG-13/R) for adult situations and violence
Run Time: 92 minutes
Released by Universe Entertainment Ltd. (HK)
Directed by Fong Ling-Chun. Produced by Teddy Robin. Written by Lillian Lee. Cinematography by Jingle Ma. Edited by Henry Cheung. Action Choreographed b y Fung Hark-On and Lo Kwok-Wai. Starring Anita Mui, Andy Lau, Derek Yee, Patrick Tse, Ida Chan, Lawrence Ng, Ken Low, Bao Fang, Shut Mei-Yee.
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