I have been reading the original story, so naturally I am curious about this adaptation. By the third scene my heart is swimming in tears.

What an amazing actress Miss Lin is, to be able to wrench such emotions from the audience. A truly stunning performance. Visually the film is a feast most astonishing, bringing an ancient Chinese style of illustration into a livid life form. The scene where Jia Baoyu visits the memorial to his true counterpart had the most sublime impact which I cannot describe. Small wonder that I read that this is Miss Lin's favourite film. Whilst the depth and nature of the other major characters was not fully explored, the cinematographic depiction of the reality of the world inhabited by Jia Baoyu and his true counterpart provided a most interesting and soul satisfying focus for any students of the original work. The capture of this essence by the director is a supreme achievement.

The last Huangmei offering from Shaw studio is finally here! It was a very shrewd decision to cast Brigitte Lin, the reigning queen of the 70s Qiong Yao romances as Pao Yu and under the meticulous direction of Li Han Hsiang, she managed to pull it off and made this version of Pau Yu uniquely her own. Sylvia Chang has the esteemed role of Dai Yu but seemed miscast and tried too hard to make herself a tragic figure. In the hectic rush to complete the film for premiere ahead of the other competing version from Taiwan by Ivy Ling Po, many locations and scenes were skipped as evidenced by a few unfilmed tracks from the EMI original soundtrack release. Basically a one man/woman show for Brigitte Lin as other characters are under developed or completely left out and what a shame even the singer who dubbed all the songs was not mentioned. Applaud for the musical arrangements by Wang Fook Ling, which stand the test of time and still pull all the heart strings after 30 years!

Love discovered and lost is but one of the themes of this lavish Shaw Brothers' rendition of an old Chinese tale.

Western audiences might find it confusing to find that the male romantic lead, Jia Baoyu, is played by a female-- but this is merely to show an excessive of sensitivity and tenderness, as well as a childlike innocence. And, while it might take a little getting used to, Brigitte Lin does a successful job in pulling it off.

The movie plays like an opera. And, indeed, it does share a number of the characteristics of both Western and Chinese opera-- again with great success, but the plot moves along through both dialogue and song. The depths of the emotions chartered here are quite dramatic, and maybe a touch melodramatic, but that is a good representation of human nature, particularly in matters of the heart. There is an invariable drama to love which supersedes all reason. The primary plot of the slow realization of a first, true love is nicely set off by the secondary plot of jealousy and deceit among the family and its servants. It might almost seem heavy-handed, but a strong cast, boasting strong performances cares it off flawlessly.

Newly remastered in lavish colors, this film is a true treasure in every sense of the word. Clearly, one of the Shaw Brothers' best.