Two famous comedians from pre-Revolution days perform a series of sketches in a theatre for a group of Party cadres. The stage performances blend over into absurdist, self-contained fantasy episodes where the two comics allegorically parody Party propaganda and ideological orthodoxy.
Wiewnacheng de xiju, 没有完成的喜剧, Mei you wan cheng de xi ju
The worst thing the Chinese Communist party have done is when they stopped Lu Ban from making any more films.
On YT unlisted (it's out of copyright): www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItGd2MX5wQk&ab_channel=JohnCrespi
also thank you julian ward for the suggestion 🫡
What a difference direction can make, even in the smallest details! This film is slightly amazing, despite some evident flaws--last segment is a bit maudlin, and the structure doesn't cohere (nor does it seem to want to). But the comic duo at the center of this movie have genius instincts, and director Lu Ban is clearly invested; even the credits sequence shows a flair for composition. It might be too much to call Lu Ban a master of the craft--pacing sometimes feels off, and he's not quite there with the simple scenes, nor is his organization of space especially noteworthy. But something about the comedic tone he infuses into the film is really unique. The funniest part in the movie,…
This was made during a small period of relative artistic freedom called the Hundred Flowers Movement, it stars a comedy duo who had become famous in the 1930's apparently being reunited for the first time in years, the movie then has them performing short plays/movies each followed by the comments of an audience, including a critic being the official voice of the party. Suffice to say that he doesn't like what he sees, and the movie becomes an attack on the idea of official art and praise of the power of satire.
The director never worked again.
