The Moving Image Source Calendar is a selective international guide to retrospectives, screenings, festivals, and exhibitions.
Descriptions are drawn from the calendars of the presenting venues.
-
The Legend and the Beauty—The Films of Lin Dai
August 14–October 1, 2009 at
Hong Kong Film Archive
, Hong Kong
Lin Dai (aka Linda Lin Dai, Linda Ching) is more than a star; she's a legend. Her life was famously and prematurely cut short by suicide in 1964, but that only heightened her mystique. We would never know what could've been. For that, we miss her and admire her and love her even more. Her star shone brightly in a career that spanned 14 years-her first film, Singing under the Moon, was released in 1953 and her last, The Mirror, in 1967 posthumously-decorated by four Best Actress awards and no less than a dozen big hits. She was as beautiful a star as she was versatile an actress. And she was versatile in her beauty, appearing endearingly gorgeous in vastly different roles, in ways wonderfully befitting of them.
She started her career playing village lasses but quickly moved on to embody other personas. She was as captivating and compelling playing historical figures with tragic dispositions as she was in city comedies, making us laugh with her wits or at her wimps. She was strong-willed-friends and colleagues told us so, but we don't really need to be told, for her toughness came through readily in her performances, even in her characters' weakest moments. She was a consummate actor, but it was her strong personality that elevated her to stardom and beyond. To commemorate the donation of Lin Dai's personal artifacts by her son, Lung Tzong-hann, the HKFA is presenting this program of 18 films.
Featured Works:
Golden Phoenix (Yan Jun, 1956); The Fisherman's Daughter (Bu Wancang, 1956); A Mellow Spring (Li Han-hsiang, 1957); Golden Lotus (Griffin Yue Feng, 1957); The Battle of Love (Griffin Yue Feng, 1957); Diau Charn (Li Han-hsiang, 1958); Humiliation for Sale (Yan Jun, 1958); Cinderella and Her Little Angels (Tang Huang, 1959); The Kingdom and the Beauty (Li Han-hsiang, 1959); Bachelors Beware (Evan Yang, 1960); Les Belles (Doe Ching, 1961); Love Without End (Doe Ching, 1961); Madam White Snake (Griffin Yue Feng, 1962); Love Parade (Doe Ching, 1963); Beyond the Great Wall (Li Han-hsiang, 1964); The Last Woman of Shang (Griffin Yue Feng, 1964, pictured); The Blue and the Black (Doe Ching, 1966); The Blue and the Black 2 (Doe Ching, 1966)
Program information:
