The king of masks

Movie
German title	The king of masks
Original title	Bian Lian
Country of production	China ; Hong Kong
original language	Standard Chinese
Publishing year	1996
length	95 minutes
Age rating	FSK 6
Rod
Director	Wu Tianming
script	Wei Minglun based; on a story by Chen Wengui
production	Wu Tianming for Shaw Brothers
music	Zhao Jiping
camera	Mu Da-Yuan
occupation
	Zhu Xu : Bian Lin Wang, the "King of Masks"; Zhou Renying : Pooch; Zhao Zhigang : Master Liang Sao Lang;

The King of the Masks ( Chinese 變臉 / 变脸 , Pinyin Biàn Liǎn ) is a Chinese drama by Wu Tianming from 1996.

content

The old street artist Wang is a loner. Wang has mastered the art of changing masks, a famous element of Sichuan opera , in a unique way, but his knowledge and skills will die out with him. The secret of tearing off the masks quickly may only be passed on to male descendants and Wang's only son died in childhood. Master Liang, who is considered the best female actor in the opera, convinces Wang to look for a grandson who can learn his art. Wang buys a barely seven-year-old boy in a slum area, whom he calls “little dog” and who calls himself “grandfather”. Both live with the little monkey “General” on Wang's houseboat. However, Wang soon realizes that the supposed boy is a girl and turns away from her bitterly about his fate. He allows her to work for him as a kind of servant and she has to call him “master” - he keeps the art of changing masks to himself.

In the following months he teaches her artistic tricks with which she accompanies him in his mask changing performances. One day when little dog tries to discover the secret of changing masks, a mask is lit on a candle. As a result, in addition to the masks, almost the entire houseboat burns down. Wang and puppy now live in dire poverty, even if Wang is too proud to beg. Puppy is caught stealing, kidnapped by a man and locked in a house. Here she finds a little boy who was kidnapped just like her. Together they flee and Puppy brings the boy unrecognized to Wang's houseboat. A priestess foretold that he would soon have a grandson, and so he accepts the boy. A short time later he was arrested as a child kidnapper, as the boy was already wanted by the police by his rich family. The soldiers extorted Wang's confession that he was a kidnapper. In desperation, Puppy first turns to Master Liang, whose hands are tied as an actor, and then throws himself from a roof in desperation in front of a high-ranking military man - he had refused to help her with the matter. Shaken by the girl's deed and since his favorite actor Liang also knows his friend Wang is innocent, the military succeeds in securing Wang's release. Wang recognizes Puppy's deep love for him and accepts her as his granddaughter. She is allowed to call him "Grandfather" again and learns the art of changing masks from him.

criticism

Cinema.de rated the film as a “touching little masterpiece that tells an eternal dream of mankind: to find a home in front of exotic images of large landscapes and old cities”. The king of masks is "simple and beautiful". The lexicon of international films described King of the Masks as a " film that is impressive in terms of form and content", which would promote "a tolerant humanity and trust in one's own feelings".