Spicy Love Soup

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Spicy Love Soup
Directed by	Zhang Yang
Produced by	Zhang Peimin Duan Zhongtan (e.p.) Xue Zhongding (e.p.) Peter Loehr (e.p.)
Written by	Zhang Yang Cai Shangjun Diao Yi'nan Liu Fendou
Music by	Jia Minshu
Cinematography	Zhang Jian
Editing by	Yang Hongyu
Distributed by	Xi'an Film Studio (China) China Film Corp. (international)
Release date(s)	May, 1997 June 18, 1998 (East West Film Festival)
Language	Mandarin Chinese
Budget	$ 200,000 (U.S.)[1]
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese:	爱情麻辣烫
Traditional Chinese:	愛情麻辣燙
Pinyin:	Aìqíng málà tàng

Spicy Love Soup is a 1997 Chinese film directed by Zhang Yang and written by Zhang, Liu Fendou, Cai Shangjun, and Diao Yi'nan based on a story by Zhang and Peter Loehr. Spicy Love Soup was produced by Loehr's Imar Film Company, primarily from Taiwanese sources, with the auspices of the state-run Xi'an Film Studio.^[1]

The film is Zhang's directorial debut and would prove to be a launching pad for those both in front and behind the cameras. Screenwriters Cai Shangjun (The Red Awn) and Diao Yi'nan (Uniform, Night Train) have since gone on to direct their own films, while Liu Fendou has expanded into both directing (Green Hat) and film production (Zhang Yibai's Spring Subway). The cast is also notable for the debuts of two of China's most popular actresses, Gao Yuanyuan and Xu Jinglei.

The film is an anthology of sorts, and tells its story of love and life in modern Beijing through a series of five vignettes.

Spicy Love Soup was, in addition, the first film in mainland China to see a simultaneous release of a soundtrack, consisting primarily of Taiwanese pop songs.^[1]

Contents 1 Cast 1.1 First vignette 1.2 Second vignette 1.3 Third vignette 1.4 Fourth vignette 1.5 Fifth vignette 1.6 Sixth vignette 2 Reception 3 References 4 External links

[edit] Cast

[edit] First vignette

• Wang Xuebing, a husband
• Liu Jie, his wife

[edit] Second vignette

• Tang Sifu, an elderly widow
• Li Mei, her daughter
• Liu Zhao, a suitor
• Li Tang, a suitor
• Wen Xingyu, a suitor

[edit] Third vignette

• Zhao Miao, a school boy,
• Gao Yuanyuan, his object of affection

[edit] Fourth vignette

• Guo Tao, a husband
• Xu Fan, and his wife

[edit] Fifth vignette

• Sun Yisheng, a young boy
• Pu Cunxin, his father
• Lu Liping, his mother

[edit] Sixth vignette

• Shao Bing, a young man
• Xu Jinglei, a young woman

[edit] Reception

Released internationally in London's East West Film Festival in June of 1998, Spicy Love Soup was generally well received by western critics. Derek Elley of Variety cited the film as being a pioneering example of the "well directed" Chinese movie, that nevertheless doesn't fall into the camp of "artier" fare.^[1] The film was also well received in mainland China, where it had been released a year earlier, where it became one of the most successful independent films released domestically.^[2]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Spicy Love Soup at the Internet Movie Database
• Spicy Love Soup at Allmovie
• Spicy Love Soup at the Chinese Movie Database

v • d • e Films directed by Zhang Yang Spicy Love Soup (1997) • Shower (1999) • Quitting (2000) • Sunflower (2005) • Getting Home (2007)

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