The Wheel of Life
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Muranów
Muranów
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Film description
A novella film created by three of Taiwan's leading directors – King Hu, Hsing Lee, and Pai Ching-jui. In each of the three love stories unfolding in different eras, the protagonists are played by the same three actors. The opening chapter of the film, directed by Hu, is a precisely composed wuxia tale, set among the dramatic mountain landscapes. The next chapter portrays a group of Beijing Opera performers, while the final chapter focuses on modern dancers from Taipei. The same motifs reappearing in different settings come together to form a sort of a Buddhist treatise on the essence of love and betrayal, life and death.
This is the last film King Hu shot in Taiwan and one of the last titles of his directorial career. It is also a touching farewell to the actors who, over the years, helped build the career of this outstanding author.
text:
Marcin Krasnowolski
King Hu
Born in Beijing in 1932, grew up surrounded by classical Chinese painting and literature. At the age of 18, he moved to Hong Kong to create advertising posters, then went on to work for the famous Shaw Brothers Studio. After the success of "Come Drink With Me," a film that revolutionized the genre of wuxia, he moved to Taiwan to shoot "Dragon Inn," which enjoyed an enthusiastic reception. His next film, "A Touch of Zen," took three years to make and is widely considered to be his masterpiece. Hu's subsequent productions, shot in various locations including South Korea, form part of the ambitious wuxia canon but remain fairly unknown outside of Asia. King Hu is regarded as the visionary of action cinema who created the trends that remain present in mainstream productions to this day.
1966 Napij się ze mną / Da zui xia / Come Drink with me
1967 Dragon Inn / Long meh kezhan / Dragon Gate Inn
1971 Dotyk zen / Xia nu / A Touch of Zen
1973 Ying chun gez hi / The Fate of Lee Khan
1979 Deszcz w górach / Kong shan ling yu / Raining in the Mountain
1979 Legenda gór / Shan zhong zhuan qi / Legend of the Mountain
1983 Koło życia / Da lunhui / The Wheel of Life (jedna z nowel)
1993 Hua pi zhi: Yin yang fa wang / Painted Skin