Dream of the Red Chamber () (also known as Dream of the Red Mansions and The Red Chamber Dream) is a 1944 Chinese film directed by Bu Wancang. It is an adaptation of the classic 18th century Qing-era novel by Cao Xueqin. The film follows Yue Opera tradition of casting a female actor in a male role.
It is the third known film adaptation of the novel. The earliest was a short film made in 1924 starring male Peking Opera singer Mei Lanfang as Lin Daiyu, and the second a silent film made in 1927, directed by Ren Pengnian and Yu Boyan.
Cast Yuan Meiyun as Jia Baoyu (cross-gender acting) Zhou Xuan as Lin Daiyu Wang Danfeng as Xue Baochai Bai Hong as Wang Xifeng Ouyang Sha-fei as Hua Xiren
Release The film was released into the public domain 50 years after it was published, under copyright laws in the People's Republic of China.
It was distributed as a double feature with Empress Wu Zetian by Cinema Epoch in 2008, as part of their Chinese Film Classics Collection.
References
External links
Dream of the Red Chamber at the Chinese Movie Database Dream of the Red Chamber at Hong Kong Movie Database