Hong Kong Nocturne
Musicals, as they were usually practiced, focused on the creation of family. Disparate people come together through song and dance to form a new family unit, either traditional (i.e., romance and marriage) or non-traditional (the gangs of West Side Story or the bonhomie of the male leads in Singing In The Rain).
Hong Kong Nocturne is no different; but unlike many musicals it has a strong preference for what kind of family is best. Three beautiful daughters, Tsui, Chuan and Ting (played, respectively, by three of Shaw’s greatest late-60s stars Lily Ho, Cheng Pei Pei and Chin Ping) perform as singing/dancing assistants in their father’s magic show. Old enough to realize that it is their looks and talents, and not their father’s ancient sleight-of-hand, that bring in the audiences, they demand their own salaries. When dad sells out his daughters to pay his gold-digging girlfriend (like Disney cartoons, mothers are frequently dead in Shaw Brothers films), they abandon him entirely.
On their own, the girls start new careers and find new father figures in their boyfriends, husbands and crushes. The world of song and dance creates new families to replace the old. Nocturne compares the new family to the old, a surprise move that pushed the movie in many unexpected directions.
Directed by Japanese journeyman Inoue Umetsugu, and remade from the 1963 Japanese film I Want To Dance At Night, Nocturne is one of the most obvious examples of Shaw’s importation of Japanese film style. The studio that brought widescreen color to Hong Kong in the late 1950s saw that Japan had one-upped their stylistic, super-efficient filmmaking. Shaws, always willing to learn or ‘borrow’ from the best, made the obvious decision – If you can’t beat them, hire them.
The result is one of Shaw’s best uses of color; each daughter is given a symbolic primary color which follows them throughout the film, appearing in costumes, lighting and set decoration. In the musical numbers the colors explode, woven together by Shaw’s most elaborate choreography and filling Shaw’s most fantastically designed sets. Nocturne soars above the studio’s earlier attempts at the western musical, Les Belles and Love Parade.
More than one actor in this film would become better known for their roles in sword play films. Cheng Pei Pei, before she became locked into the role of Shaw’s female fighting star, shows off the ballet training that served her so well in her martial roles. Tien Feng, who frequently played villains in swordplay and kung fu films, appears as an abusive ballet instructor. Typecasting had been, and would remain, a hallmark of Shaw Brothers; Hong Kong Nocturne reveals just how flexible many of their stars actually were.
Ian Whitney
Published: 2004-07-17