“The dazzling mise en scene embraces elements of backstage musical, thriller, courtroom drama, and political morality. Great color...” (National Film Theatre). Two Stage Sisters was a resounding critical success at London's National Theatre (voted the best film to premiere there in 1980) and was the highlight of the Spring 1981 “Electric Shadows” retrospective of the San Francisco International Film Festival. The Festival's Steven Horowitz writes:
“The rise of two women from ragtag itinerant players to Shaoxing Opera stars in 1940s Shanghai and the separate paths they take there before being reunited in the end is told against the backdrop of a turbulent fifteen year period (1935-1950) in Chinese history. The film displays a remarkably mature visual style and meticulous period detail all the more noteworthy since this was one of the last films made in the Shanghai studios before the Cultural Revolution halted all production.
“Director Xie Jin claims that two-thirds of the way through filming he sensed the changing political climate and sharpened the film's revolutionary thrust. Nevertheless, the film came under attack in early 1966, especially for its portrayal of Yuehong, the ‘bad' sister, as a character deserving some sympathy and understanding, rather than as a one-dimensional ‘negative type.' Apparently, the picturesque riverside stage seen in the opening and closing scenes was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution because of its association with the film.”