THE GODDESS – DVD

The Goddess (DVD)
A film by Yong-gang Wu

Ruan Lingyu, one of the most famous stars of early Chinese cinema, gives a devastating performance as an unnamed goddess an ironic euphemism for a prostitute in this profoundly moving but rarely seen classic of world cinema. A tragic tale of shame and maternal sacrifice, Ruan stars as a mother desperate to provide for her young son and forced to take brutal vengeance on her pimp. It is a profoundly moving drama, all the poignant by the fact that its star committed suicide at the age of 24, a year after the film’s release.

Newly restored by the Chinese Film Archive, this iconic film boasts a new score by renowned composer Zou Ye. Premiered at the BFI London Film Festival in 2014, this long-awaited release makes one of the most important early Chinese films finally available on DVD in the UK, and will delight all fans of silent cinema.

China | 1934 | black and white | 78 minutes | silent, Mandarin intertitles with English subtitles | original aspect ratio 1.33:1 | DVD9: PAL, 25fps, PCM 2.0 stereo audio (48kHz/24-bit) | cert PG (infrequent mild sex references, violence, language)| Region 2