Under normal circumstances, seeing Jackie Chan in a Shaw Brothers films would immediately create the assumption that it’s an action film. You’d expect to see feet and fists flying and stunts galore. While The Golden Lotus was Chan’s first major acting role; he was there to act and not deliver the action. The legendary Hong Kong studio produced more than martial art epics. It’s just the martial arts films were what American distributors wanted to put in theaters and drive-ins. The more prestigious dramas stayed in Asia. The Golden Lotus brings a legendary destructive erotic novel to the screen I’d compare the book to The Postman Only Rings Twice or The Story of O except the original novel came out in 1610. That’s 10 years before the pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock people in China were reading this tawdry tale. They set the trend all those centuries before. The Golden Lotus shows that even 400 plus years ago, the Chinese were entertaining with a sizzling story that makes Body Heat seem lukewarm.
Ximen Qing (Lady Blood Boxer‘s Peter Yang) is an extremely rich businessman who sees Pan Chin-lien (Chines Godfathers’ Chin Hu) on her balcony. Even though he’s married with a few extra concubines, Qing comes up with a plan with a mutual friend. Pan is at the friend’s house working on clothes when Qing shows up ready for lunch. Pan at first wants nothing to do with Qing. She’s married to a local baker who sells his food in the area. Pan doesn’t care since he knows that a woman who has tiny bound feet wasn’t made to be the wife of a hunchback baker who hangs out with the pear salesman (Jackie Chan). When the old lady goes off to fetch a high price wine for the lunch, Qing buries his face between Pan’s legs. At first, she resists, but then she gives into the man. She wants to be his concubine. The pear salesman tells the baker what’s happening with his wife and Qing at the old lady’s shop. The hunchback hubby busts in on the couple. Things don’t go right for him and soon Pan finds herself single. Life isn’t happily ever after when Pan and Qing can freely hook up.
The Golden Lotus doesn’t water down the disturbing nature of the novel although it does discretely shoot a bit of the action. Even though this was 1974, Shaw Brothers weren’t going to go full Last Tango In Paris. Qing is a remarkably disgusting character. He’s extremely obsessed with tiny bound feet on women. He promotes one concubine over another because her feet are just a fraction smaller. What he does to his neighbor’s wife is rather nasty. Peter Yang really gets at the cold heart of the entitled lothario. He’s always scheming and burning people. While Jackie Chan has a minor role, he delivers without having to do any amazing kicks. Chin Hu doesn’t hold back either when she goes from devoted wife to scheming against her husband. I’m not sure if this film played on Cinemax After Dark. It should have. The Golden Lotus is all about tarnished people in an opulent world.
The Video is 2.35:1 anamorphic. The 1080p resolution will give you a major sense of how tiny foot binding would make a woman’s feet. The Audio is LPCM 2.0 Mono in Mandarin. The sound is smooth so you’ll hear this guy put his moves on all the ladies. The movie is subtitled in English.
Trailer (2:29) lets you know this is based off the banned book and will be a prestigious production.
Still Gallery (2:39) is a montage of press photos.
4 Postcards with production photos that are suitable for framing.
88 Films presents The Golden Lotus. Directed by Li Han-hsiang. Screenplay by Li Han-hsiang. Starring Peter Yang, Hu Jin, Tien Lie, Chen Ping and Jackie Chan. Running Time: 117 minutes. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: September 10, 2024.
