The Bitter Tea of General Yen [1933] / Golden Boy [1939]

For a 1933 film, THE BITTER TEA has the mental acuity and moral looseness of the 1990s. But for glitchy and occasionally hazy B&W photography it has the feel of a modern film and in fact it must have raised many eyebrows in its day: The thought of a white woman fantasizing about a Chinese man cannot have gone down easily with Western audiences. Asther has a commanding performance as Gen. Yen even if his makeup is unconvincing; and in spite of her dark desires Stanwyck has the moral fortitude that any man would fall for, even if she is not your conventional beauty. Direction is superb and photography first class in spite of the film negative clearly showing signs of damage. Strongly recommended.

GOLDEN BOY is not in the same class as THE BITTER TEA but it is a privilege to watch young Stanwyck and Holden at work.

In the tradition of double-bill's, this DVD offers one great film and one disappointment - although for many the set's masterpiece may come as a surprise.

Frank Capra's most atypical and sensual picture, The Bitter Tea of General Yen defies everything people think they know about the director. No small town schmaltz or last minute reprieves here, but a surprisingly modern and often brutal adult drama set in a surprisingly morally ambiguous China torn apart by local warlords and opportunistic Westerners making a fast buck out of the chaos. Bodies hang from what is left of buildings, refugees are machine-gunned from passing trucks as children watch with emotionless faces, and when Stanwyck arrives in the middle of the evacuation of Shanghai to marry a missionary she hasn't seen in three years, no-one - not even the priest who has come to collect her - can be bothered to help her dying rickshaw driver. `Rescued' by Nils Asther's General Yen, she is awoken by the sound of firing squads carrying out mass executions of prisoners. Yen apologises and promises it will not happen again - "They are taking the rest of them down the road, out of earshot." Quickly realizing that he has no intention of returning her to her fiancé, she finds herself involuntarily drawn to him as he constantly challenges her preconceived notions of the Chinese, with tragic consequences.

Although racist stereotypes are present, especially in a surprisingly sexual nightmare sequence where Yen appears as both vampiric rapist and heroic rescuer, they're mainly there to be subverted, and it's surprisingly critical of how incompatible and patronising the intentions of Christian missionaries to impose western values are with the people they have come to `save.' Racism and defeatism is rife among their ranks as they see dubious merit in their work - as one elderly missionary reveals when explaining how he misinterpreted a group of Mongolian bandits' spellbound interest in the Easter story until they promptly crucified the next merchants' caravan to pass through their territory. Indeed, it's an act of `Christian' charity and forgiveness that has the most devastating results for Yen, with Barbara Stanwyck only faintly beginning to understand the world she finds herself in too late.

Both characters are uncomfortable with the nature of their desires, and Yen's relationship with his Chinese mistress and his insistence that Stanwyck give herself to him freely or not at all is surprisingly sophisticated considering the usual `Yellow Peril' stereotypes of the day. Asther in particular does a fine job of avoiding cliché with a complex and unpatronising portrait mixing casual cruelty, bemused cynicism and great sensitivity that is quite remarkable for its time. Walter Connolly similarly plays against expectations as the general's `financial advisor,' and to him falls the beautiful closing lines in the film's final scene - one of those pieces of great writing that left me thinking, "Damn, I wish I'd written that!"

A critical and commercial flop in its day, much cut by the censors (Columbia's UK DVD appears to be uncut) and rarely revived, it has maturity and a tortured romanticism that is truly unique among Capra's work and is well worth seeking out. Great photography by Joseph Walker too.

Some films age badly, but Golden Boy practically decomposes before your eyes. Not the print, which is crisp and beautiful as new in Columbia's recent DVD, but in plot and dialogue it's beyond prehistoric. A-list production values it may have, but boy, is it bad.

Clifford Odets may have fashioned himself as a champion of the working man, but his patronising portrayal of violinist-boxer William Holden's immigrant family makes a Chico Marx routine look like Arthur Miller by comparison. No cliché is left unturned, be it Lee J. Cobb's Gepetto-like Ay-a-Tallyana papa, the loveable wife-beating brother-in-law (she loves it really: no, she really DOES) or Holden's Golden Boy playing Brahms' Cradle Song on the violin - you'll be rooting for him to bust his hand so he can never play the violin again. Ye gods, the man even names a black fighter - I'm not kidding - the Chocolate Drop. And the dialog! The cast should have been paid danger money for going anywhere near it.

Barbara Stanwyck and Adolphe Menjou fare better, but Joseph Calleia's mobster is unintentionally funnier than Joe Piscopo's Danny Vermin in Johnny Dangerously, though he does at least flick a mean cigarette. Even William Holden, in his star-making role, is strikingly poor here. It's not just that, terrifying but true, he looks like a very young Tom Hanks but his acting is clumsy, his voice weak and he occasionally looks awkward and desperately unsure of how to act to camera: hard to believe that you're watching the first steps of a future screen great here - indeed, just about the only line to ring true is when Stanwyck tells him "I'll see you in 1966. By then, you may have become somebody." Do yourself a favor and see Body and Soul or The Set-Up instead.

No extras on either film.

Until watching this film, I would never of thought the 'touching of hands' could symbolise more love than a 'kiss'.

The 'unspoken' emotions in this film are extremely touching and having discovered this film by 'accident', I can honestly say this film has jumped to the top of my favourite list and I have already watched it over 15 times since I purchased it less than a week ago!!

Both Barbara Stanwyck (Megan Davies) and Nils Asther (General Yen), convey their passion with real honesty and emotion and I love the scenery that envelops their scenes together; after watching this film I can honestly say that I have been without this 'hiddden gem' for far too long - I would recommend all true romantics who want a good storyline, hidden desire and a good cry, to sit back, switch off and watch this film.

Absolutely excellent!

I must say that having watched the above, I was not so moved by 'Golden Boy' but that could be because I was too engrossed in devoting my spare time to thinking of 'The Bitter Tea of General Yen', to be able to concentrate on any other film!