Whenever a movie is set in the town or city in which you live, there’s bound to be controversy among the residents. Did they accurately portray the population? Did they make the city look too clean/dirty/crazy/boring? While it’s impossible to capture on film all the nuances and contradictions inherent in any neighborhood, some movies get pretty close. And others… don’t. Below is a list of ten movies featuring Shanghai in one capacity or another. They may not be the most famous or the most popular, but each of them shows a different part of Shanghai that, together, reinforces the dynamic aspects of this city that we all know and love.

Fistof Fury HongKong Poster (photo: wikipedia)

Fist of Fury 精武门 (1972)
Because a Shanghai movie list wouldn’t be complete without a Bruce Lee film! Watch Lee showcase his legendary martial arts skills in the second major movie of his career. Determined to get revenge for his master’s brutal death, Lee fights for justice and honor. I mean, it’s Bruce Lee – what else would he fight for?

Empire of the Sun 太阳帝国 (1987)
One of Steven Spielberg’s most respected films, this one features a young Christian Bale and is based on the loosely autobiographical novel by J.G. Ballard. Bale plays a young boy in a wealthy British family living in Shanghai whose life is turned upside down when he becomes a prisoner of war in a Japanese internment camp during World War II.

Shanghai Triad 摇啊摇，摇到外婆桥 (1995)
This movie was the last collaboration (both personal and professional) between famed director Zhang Yimou (who also directed Raise the Red Lantern) and actress Gong Li until 2006’s Curse of the Golden Flower. It manages to avoid becoming a clichéd “gangster movie” as it examines the criminal underbelly of Shanghai in the 1930’s through the eyes of a teenage boy. 

Temptress Moon 风月 (1996)
Internationally praised, this film was actually banned by Chinese authorities – watch it and you’ll see why. Passionate love affairs are torn apart by rampant drug use, while the Shanghai triad thrives through manipulation, murder, and a little bit of male prostitution. It all makes for a heart wrenching, yet fascinating, look at some of Shanghai’s more tortured residents.

Suzhou River 苏州河 (2000)
Perhaps the grittiest of the bunch, Suzhou River tells a tragic love story set against the urban backdrop of modern day Shanghai. The rundown factories and dilapidated warehouses featured in the film are obviously not movie sets, which presents a completely different view of Shanghai than is normally shown on screen. This is another one that was banned in China, along with the director.

The White Countess 伯爵夫人 (1995)
Though perhaps not the most prestigious one on the list, this film boasts an impressive cast (Ralph Fiennes and Natasha Richardson, among others) and gorgeous scenery. It’s essentially a love story, showing the hardships of a group of immigrants living in war ravaged Shanghai in the 1930s.

 

Mission Impossible III 碟中谍3 (2006)
Lest this movie list get a bit too heavy, I thought including one that used Shanghai as the backdrop to the climactic showdown might be a good idea. The third installment of the Mission Impossible films involves brain implanted bombs, a “Rabbit’s Foot,” false identities – you know, the usual.

The Painted Veil 面纱 (2006)
A tear jerker pretty much from the start, this movie stars Edward Norton as a doctor living in 1920s Shanghai who, after finding that his socialite wife has been unfaithful, threatens her with a shameful divorce unless she accompanies him to a rural Chinese village where he attempts to treat the cholera outbreak. While there, they appear to fall back in love with each other, until… well, I won’t ruin it for you. Tear jerker, people. That’s all I’m saying.

Lust, Caution 色·戒 (2007)
Based on a 1979 short story, director Ang Lee presents a group of college students in 1942 Shanghai who attempt to assassinate a member of the puppet government set up by the invading Japanese army. Their plan involves a beautiful woman, seduction, and a whole lot of betrayal. 

Shanghai (2009)
For the last film on this list, I thought I’d give you guys a peek at what’s to come. Not yet released, this movie stars John Cusack as an American spy sent to Shanghai in 1941, where he (naturally) becomes caught up in a web of lies and romance. Keep an eye out for this soon-to-be-released one in your local DVD shop!

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