Arquivo

Shanghai in the forties during Japanese occupation, is the setting for a drama seasoned with espionage, romance and hot doses of sex. Young Wang Chiah-Chih becomes involved with the Resistance and is assigned the task of coming close to a local political big shot allied to the Japanese and to act as bait in order to do away with him. The greatest challenge is to open a breach in the security barrier surrounding the cautious entrepreneur and attract him into a trap. For such, he resorts to a great deal of seduction. An unexpected turnabout however, can bring his entire plan to founder. The film was awarded the Golden Lion at the 2007 Venice Festival, two years after director Ang Lee won the same prize with Brokeback Mountain. The production also earned the Osella Prize for Best Photography for Mexican Rodrigo Prieto.