Yuan Muzhi (; March 3, 1909 – January 30, 1978) was an

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

from the Republic of China and later of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Career

As an actor, Yuan became extremely popular and took on the nickname "man with a thousand faces." He gained prominence in a series of films for the leftist Diantong Film Company. These included the film '' Plunder of Peach and Plum'' (1935) (which Yuan also wrote) and the

movie A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

Sons and Daughters in a Time of Storm ''Children of Troubled Times'', also known as ''Fēngyún Érnǚ'', ''Scenes of City Life'', ''Children of the Storm'', and several other translations, is a patriotic 1935 Chinese film most famous as the origin of "The March of the Volunteers", th ...

'' (1935) where he was one of the two original singers (along with

Gu Menghe GU, Gu, or gu may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Gu (instrument), Chinese drums ** Bangu (drum) () or Gu (), a Chinese "flowerpot" drum * ''Global Underground'', an electronic dance music compilation series Other media * GU Comics, an ...

) of the movie's theme song, '' The March of the Volunteers'', which later became the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

of China. His career eventually brought him to director's chair. Yuan's filmmaking debut, the innovative musical comedy '' Scenes of City Life'' (1935) (''Dushi fengguang''), was one of the earliest non-silent features made in China, as the Shanghai industry was finally transitioning to sound. The film's blend of screwball humor and romance reflected Yuan's harsh, documentary style social observations of middle class existence in the failing economy in Great Depression-era Shanghai. The father of one main character is a

pawn shop A pawnbroker is an individual or business (pawnshop or pawn shop) that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral. The items having been ''pawned'' to the broker are themselves called ''pledges'' or ...

owner, who in one humorous scene, is so hard up for cash himself—since no one has any money left to reclaim their pawned goods—he even attempts to pawn items from his own shop with another proprietor. The opening of the film features an extended montage of Shanghai's new, modern cityscape of the time, and its landmarks, such as neon signs, theatre marquees, and the Shanghai Cathedral.

Jiang Qing Jiang Qing (19 March 191414 May 1991), also known as Madame Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary, actress, and major political figure during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976). She was the fourth wife of Mao Zedong, the Chairman of ...

, the future wife of

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC) ...

, appeared in a relatively minor role in the film. She would later lead the denunciation of many of Yuan's leftist colleagues in the Shanghai filmmaking scene, accusing them of being rightists, destroying their careers and lives. Yuan's second film, '' Street Angel'' (1937) (''Malu tianshi''), starred then-unknown Zhou Xuan, who performed

He Luting He Luting (traditional: 賀綠汀; simplified: 贺绿汀; pinyin: Hè Lùtīng; July 20, 1903 – April 27, 1999) was a Chinese composer of the early 20th century. He composed songs for Chinese films beginning in the 1930s, some of which rem ...

's popular songs written for the film, " Song of the Four Seasons" and " The Wandering Songstress", and became one of China's most adored divas for the remainder of her life. ''Street Angel'' is considered one of the most important Chinese films of all time, a highlight of the "second generation" of Chinese cinema. An experimental blend of comedy and tragedy, Yuan's story followed a group of young friends whose lack of financial means and social status frustrated their dreams of happiness, including a girl singer, her prostitute sister, and her soldier lover, home briefly between fighting the Japanese occupying north China. The film, released shortly before Japan invaded Shanghai and initiated the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

in summer 1937, became a massive hit with audiences. Subsequently, ''Street Angel'' was seen to mark one of the last products of the "golden age of Chinese cinema" of the 1930s, before artists were forced to retreat to Shanghai's foreign concessions and finally came under Japanese propaganda control. Yuan also continued to act in roles, notably ''

Eight Hundred Heroes ''Eight Hundred Heroes'' () is a 1976 Taiwanese historical war drama film directed by Ting Shan-hsi about the Defense of Sihang Warehouse in 1937 Shanghai, China. The film was selected as the Taiwanese entry for the Best Foreign Language Fil ...

'' (1938) depicting the events of the Defense of Sihang Warehouse. After the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, Yuan continued to be a major figure in the film industry, helping to found Dongbei Film Studio, which eventually became the first state-controlled production companies in the

. Yuan was a delegate to the first

National People's Congress The National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (NPC; ), or simply the National People's Congress, is constitutionally the supreme state authority and the national legislature of the People's Republic of China. With 2,9 ...

and the third Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

Selected filmography

Actor

Director

References

External links

*
Yuan Muzhi
from the Chinese Movie Database

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yuan, Muzhi 1909 births 1978 deaths Male actors from Zhejiang Film directors from Zhejiang Screenwriters from Zhejiang Singers from Zhejiang Delegates to the 1st National People's Congress Members of the 3rd Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Writers from Ningbo People's Republic of China politicians from Zhejiang Chinese Communist Party politicians from Zhejiang Chinese male stage actors Republic of China writers People's Republic of China writers Musicians from Ningbo Actors from Ningbo Politicians from Ningbo Artists from Ningbo 20th-century Chinese male actors 20th-century Chinese male singers Chinese male film actors Chinese film directors 20th-century screenwriters