This Capra film is wonderfully deceptive; while it delivers all the sentimentality that one expects from this director, it also gives the viewer a whole new level of pragmatism that is not usually apparent in Capra's stories.
A young woman arrives in China to marry her missionary boyfriend. However, before the wedding can take place, she finds herself instead the captive of a powerful warlord. What plays out then is a battle of two distinct world views, one based on modernism's reverence for the self-determining individual and one based on a traditional comprehension of hierarchical values, fate and the importance of continuity.
To Capra's credit, neither side of this east/west debate is shown as possessing a monopoly on truth, but there is nonetheless at the bottom of this debate a clear criticism of colonialism and western imperialism that is rare for the period.
The actors are very earnest - (Spoilers) Barbara Stanwyck convinces you first of her convictions and then of their collapse, but it is Nils Asther, Danish-born Swede playing General Yen, who is really exceptional. Walter Connolly is perfect,too, as the soulless American war profiteer who's yoked himself to General Yen's rising star.
No, it wasn't filmed on location, no, it didn't bother itself too much with cultural authenticity and yes, the actors can be hammy at times, but, as happens so often to me with these older films, I am amazed at the commitment to real issues, albeit presented in the fully developed guise of an ill-fated love story.
A young woman arrives in China to marry her missionary boyfriend. However, before the wedding can take place, she finds herself instead the captive of a powerful warlord. What plays out then is a battle of two distinct world views, one based on modernism's reverence for the self-determining individual and one based on a traditional comprehension of hierarchical values, fate and the importance of continuity.
To Capra's credit, neither side of this east/west debate is shown as possessing a monopoly on truth, but there is nonetheless at the bottom of this debate a clear criticism of colonialism and western imperialism that is rare for the period.
The actors are very earnest - (Spoilers) Barbara Stanwyck convinces you first of her convictions and then of their collapse, but it is Nils Asther, Danish-born Swede playing General Yen, who is really exceptional. Walter Connolly is perfect,too, as the soulless American war profiteer who's yoked himself to General Yen's rising star.
No, it wasn't filmed on location, no, it didn't bother itself too much with cultural authenticity and yes, the actors can be hammy at times, but, as happens so often to me with these older films, I am amazed at the commitment to real issues, albeit presented in the fully developed guise of an ill-fated love story.