Intimate Confessions Of A Chinese Courtesan VCD

The story concerns Ai Nu, a young girl kidnapped from her family and sold into service at a bustling brothel run by luminous madam Chun-i (Betty Pei Ti). Chun-i herself isn't the slightest bit interested in men, preferring the company of women, and she's captivated immediately by Ai Nu's rebellious spirit and potential as a high-class courtesan.

In a typical Shaw Brothers twist, though, Chun-i is also an expert fighter and perfectly willing to hurt or kill those who betray her. This point is very quickly made to Ai Nu, along with the easy life she could have if she follows orders and submits to the madam's advances.

Ai Nu quickly becomes the most desirable and exclusive courtesan in the brothel and is violated in a serious of quick, ugly scenes (complete with slow motion footage of gleefully laughing older men), culminating in a botched attempt to take her own life. These scenes are deliberately (I suspect) made as thoroughly distasteful, and each ends in a freeze-frame. The director wants us to remember these men and what they've done to the unwilling young girl. A desire for vengeance is quickly kindled in Ai Nu as she becomes all that Chun-i wishes her to be, all the while plotting her revenge.

As she sets her sights on those who have wronged her, Ai Nu encounters Chief Ji (Yueh Hua), a young officer tasked with bringing the murderer who's knocking off local officials to justice. There are some great scenes between him and Ai Nu: both of them know what's going on, but he can't prove a thing and is loathed to accuse so powerful a consort of local government officials.

Intimate Confessions really stands out in the Shaw Brothers' stable: it's an intense melodrama, a kung-fu film, a brightly-coloured wuxia fantasy and a cat-and-mouse film, all rolled into one. In some ways, it's a diversion for director Chu Yuan, moving from his 'martial arts world' (the focus of most of his films for Shaw Brothers) into the floating world of brothels and courtesans that sits alongside it. No expense has been spared: Lily Ho and Betty Pei Ti are two of Shaws' most prominent lead actresses, Yueh Hua was one of the leading male stars of the day, and the costumes and sets are lavish. The camerawork is excellent too, handled with similar style and elan to Chor Yuen's work in the wuxia genre. The music is very 70's, with guitar-driven funk tunes appearing out of nowhere to presage the arrival of nubile beauties or, occasionally, wanton older men. Occasionally it's unnerving, but I suspect that overall it adds to the film's cult appeal.

All in all, it's a great film: difficult to pigeonhole, colourful and thoroughly entertaining. I recommend it to anyone who's a fan of the Shaw Brothers' films and wants to see a skewed take on the wuxia genre.

8 unnecessary basslines in the soundtrack out of 10

by Justin Viiret - Heroic-Cinema.com