Search - Pavilion of Women on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Violence, Sexual Situations Movie Release: 2001 DVD Release: 01/15/2002 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Edition: Dual Layered Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 56 mins Studio: Universal Studios Members Wishing: 1 Genres: Drama, Historical Film, Romance, Romantic Drama

A woman defies convention to find happiness, only to discover the costs are greater than she imagined in this drama based on the novel by Pearl S. Buck. In 1938, with Communist rebels on the rise in China and Imperial Japan intent upon expanding its rule into Manchuria and China, Lord Wu (Shek Sau) is a feudal leader who rules both his community and his family with an iron fist. But his wife, Madame Wu (Luo Yan), has just turned 40 and has grown weary of her husband's dominance. With her son Fengmo (John Cho) now 18 and engaged to be married, Madame Wu sees her responsibilities to her family all but complete, so in violation of traditional custom, she arranges for Chiuming (Yi Ding), a peasant girl just turned 18, to be brought into the household as Lord Wu's concubine, freeing her from sexual servitude to her husband. However, Chiuming's lack of sexual experience proves problematic for herself as well as Lord Wu, whose erotic tastes run to the unconventional. Meanwhile, Madame Wu makes the acquaintance of Andre (Willem Dafoe), an American missionary and doctor who is helping Fengmo with his studies; Andre is kind, compassionate, and intelligent, and he makes a tremendous impression on Madame Wu, who soon finds herself falling for the mysterious American as circumstances cause both her household and China to explode into chaos. Pavilion of Women was the first co-production between an American studio, Universal Pictures, and Beijing Film Studio of China; the film was shot on location in China, but with a primarily English-speaking cast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Willem Dafoe - Andre
Luo Yan - Madame Wu
Shek Sau - Mr. Wu
John Cho - Fengmo

Yim Ho's drama Pavilion of Women comes to DVD with a widescreen anamorphic transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. English soundtracks are rendered in both Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1, while a French soundtrack has been recorded in Dolby Digital Surround. There are no subtitles, but the English soundtrack is closed-captioned. Supplemental materials include a theatrical trailer, and production notes. Those with a DVD-ROM drive can access additional materials. This is a solid release from Universal. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide