Prince of Tears (Chinese: 淚王子; pinyin: Lei wangzi) is a historical drama film by Yonfan. It was nominated for the Golden Lion at the 66th Venice International Film Festival. It tells the story of a family embroiled in the tragic "White Terror" suppression of political dissidents that was wrought during the 1950s by the Kuomintang government (KMT) after their acquisition of Taiwan in the 1940s.
The film was selected as the Hong Kong entry for the 82nd Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film in 2009.
16th Hong Kong Film Critics Society Award
4th Asian Film Awards
29th Hong Kong Film Awards
The film received generally negative reviews from the press.
Hong Kong film critic Perry Lam writes in Muse Magazine, 'Prince of Tears makes a strange movie-going experience for, despite all the pathos - two little girls lose their father, a loyal soldier loses his life and a happy family is torn apart - the story is aesthetically shaped and distanced by the pictoral verve of the director to be eye-pleasing at all times.'
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"Throughout the fifties, Taiwan was subject to a sweeping anti-communist campaign known as the White Terror. During this period, political dissidents and suspected sympathizers who spoke out against the Chinese Kuomintang government were imprisoned or executed. A collective paranoia thrived on the island as many simply disappeared without a trace. Prince of Tears returns to that dangerous time with a gorgeously shot, thought-provoking look at how fear and power can corrupt good people and destroy a country from within.
Han-sun is a dashing fighter pilot. Having served in the civil war against the communists in mainland China during the late forties, he finally moves to Taiwan with his devoted wife, Ping, and his lovely daughters, Li and Zhou. Though they seem to walk through life without a care, a happy ending is not in store. The family's dreams of a serene future are irreparably shattered one bright autumn afternoon when the girls return from school to find their home ransacked by the military police and their parents thrown in jail as suspected communist spies. Now at the mercy of Uncle Ding, a low-level government bureaucrat with a terrifying scarred face, the sisters quickly discover that reality is not what it appears to be.
Largely based on Yonfan's childhood memories, Prince of Tears is akin to a sumptuous fairy tale. Alternately magnified through the eyes of innocent children and darkened by the disturbed dreams of frightened, guilty adults, the realities of a little-known era are explored through Yonfan's powerful vision. As in the best of fables, here too we have a handsome prince and a beautiful princess, a charming fairy and a mean ogre.
Elegantly shot, the film weaves the characters and their stories together in a mysterious and lyrical fashion. Yonfan's pristine touch as production designer seamlessly matches the vibrant light and colour of Chin Ting-chang's cinematography. As a result, the film's stunning look provides a stark contrast to the...