The Arch

Directed by T'ang Shushuen

Hong Kong

1968

95 mins

Unclassified 15+

An early landmark of Hong Kong independent cinema, now gloriously restored, T’ang Shushuen’s ravishing debut follows a widow torn between desire and duty. Cannes Classics 2025.

Made when T’ang Shushuen was just 27, The Arch is one of the earliest independent films made in Hong Kong. In Qing dynasty China, the widowed Madame Tung has been enshrined as a model of virtue, with an imperial arch soon to be erected in her honour. But when a soldier overseeing its construction arrives, an unspoken attraction unsettles her carefully ordered life – and grows more painful when her daughter also falls for him. Shot by Satyajit Ray cinematographer Subrata Mitra and edited by Les Blank, this exquisite debut turns a tale of repression into something quietly radical – a deeply felt portrait of female longing, social constraint and desire pushed inward until it can no longer be contained.

“One of the most magical tricks of cinema is that there is no such thing as an old film. You start to unspool The Arch from 1968 and you’re right there. The screen is like a cleansing board, and time evaporates.”

Tilda Swinton

Tickets

Sat 6 June 2026, 12pm

Past Event

State Library of NSW

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Program Strand
Classics Restored
Original Title
DǑNG FŪRÉN
Year
1968
Classification
Unclassified 15+
Country
Hong Kong
Language
In Mandarin with English subtitles
Director
T'ang Shushuen
Producer
T'ang Shushuen
Cast
Lisa Lu, Roy Chiao, Hilda Chou
Screenwriter
T'ang Shushuen
Cinematographer
Subrata Mitra, Chi Ho-Che
Editor
T'ang Shushuen, Les Blank
Composer
Tsun-Yuen Lui
Genre
Asia, Award Winner, Cannes Selected, Romance, Women Directors, Women’s Stories, Retrospective
Company Credits
Rights Holder: M+
Official Website
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