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Oasis Li

While the cheongsam, also known as qipao, is no longer a common sight on the streets of Chinese cities, the form-fitting dress is still worn at Chinese weddings, important ceremonies and in films.
From actress Anita Mui Yim-fong’s traditional   cheongsams with butterfly prints in the film Rouge to the exquisite cheongsams worn by Tang Wei in Oscar-winning filmmaker Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution, the garment has played a role in some of the most memorable Chinese films. Here are five roles that celebrate the traditional garment.
1. Anita Mui in Rouge (1987)
Adapted from Lilian Li Pihua’s novel of the same name, the film depicts a tragic romance between famous courtesan Fleur, played by Mui, and wealthy playboy Chan Chen-pang, played by Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing.
Traditional dressmaker recalls golden era of cheongsam in Hong Kong
Costume designer Lai Pan was inspired by wallpaper prints for the design of the cheongsams worn by Mui, as revealed by the film’s director, Stanley Kwan Kam-Pang, in an interview.
The cheongsams that Fleur wears when she’s a highly sought after courtesan feature bright flowers, while they become plain and simple once she is shunned. Rouge won the award for best costume design at Taiwan’s Golden Horse Film Festival in 1987.

2. Maggie Cheung Man-yuk in In the Mood for Love    (2000)
Maggie Cheung wowed global audiences with her role as lonely wife Su Li-zhen in Wong Kar-wai’s art house classic In the Mood for Love, in which she dresses in no less than 23 custom-made cheongsams.
“Chinese women look the most beautiful when dressed in cheongsams,” Cheung said in an interview with the Hong Kong Film Critics Society. “The curves of the female body are perfectly outlined and the neck appears much more slender.”
For the film, a series of flamboyant cheongsams were created from old floral dresses by master tailor Leung Long-gwong, whose clothing shop remains open in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.

3. Gong Li in Eros: The Hand (2005)
Gong Li stars as social butterfly Miss Hua in Eros: The Hand. Miss Hua develops a relationship with shy cheongsam tailor Zhang, played by Taiwanese actor Chang Chen.
When making cheongsams for Miss Hua, tailor Zhang sews hidden messages of love into the necklines, armholes and hems of the outfits.
Through her cheongsams, the film successfully expresses the love and desire between the two protagonists.


4. Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
After Rouge, Lai Pan won Taiwan’s Golden Horse Award again for his make-up and costume design work on Lust, Caution in 2007. In the film, Tang Wei’s Wong Chia-chi wears 27 cheongsams in two different styles.
When Wong is still a schoolgirl, her cheongsams are plain cotton and loose fitting, but when she becomes the bait to lure a traitor into a trap, her cheongsams are made with ornately printed silk or satin and are closely fitted.
Lai Pan occasionally pairs Tang’s cheongsams with tailored trench coats, chic hats and elegant heels.

5. Ni Ni in The Flowers of War (2011)
Young Chinese actress Ni Ni rose to fame with her performance as patriotic prostitute Mo Yu in The Flowers of War. Led by Mo, a group of prostitutes sacrifice their own lives to protect a group of schoolgirls during the brutal Nanking massacre in wartime China.
Always dressed in gorgeous cheongsams, the prostitutes’ outfits contrast with the clothes worn by citizens of the occupied city.
 Five dressmakers keeping alive the qipao, or cheongsam, in Hong Kong
The most striking cheongsam worn by Mo is made of crimson red cotton and features a large peacock and blue flowers. She often pairs this particularly alluring cheongsam with a leopard-print fur coat.



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From In the Mood for Love to Rouge – five films that celebrate the cheongsam, or qipao

Tang Wei inLust, Caution (2007).

D5JM54 CHRISTIAN BALE & NI NI THE FLOWERS OF WAR; JIN LING SHI SAN CHAI (2011)

K38RPX IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE TONY LEUNG, MAGGIE CHEUNG     Date: 2000

PN9HD7 Prod DB © Jet Tone Films - Ipso Facto - Solaris / DREROS (EROS) film a sketches de Michaelangelo Antonioni, Steven Soderbergh et Wong Kar Wai 2004 USA / ITA / HK / CHI / FRA / LUX / GB¨The Hand¨ de Wong Kar Wai avec Gong Li

Anita MuiYim-fong in Rouge (1987) wears a beautiful cheongsam. Her outfits were inspired by patterns from wallpaper.

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Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Tang Wei in a still from Lust, Caution. Photo: Edko Film

Tony Leung Chiu-wai in the film "In The Mood For Love".

Tony Leung Chiu-wai (left) and Xin Shu-fen in a scene from the Hou Hsiao-hsien's movie "A City of Sadness" (1989).

M43PP5 LUST, CAUTION 2007 Focus Features film with Wei Tang and Tony Chiu-Wai Leung

BPF527 NHU QUYNH NGUYEN, TONY LEUNG CHIU WAI, CYCLO, 1995

PM5KW3 Film Still / Publicity Stills from "In the Mood for Love" ("Fa yeung nin wa") Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu Wai © 2000 USA Films  File Reference # 30846410THA  For Editorial Use Only -  All Rights Reserved

B7TGBP Infernal Affairs Mou gaan dou Year: 2002 Hong Kong Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Andy Lau  Director: Wai Keung Lau, Siu Fai Mak. Image shot 1996. Exact date unknown.

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Lifestyle

Fashion & Beauty

Culture

Film & TV

A cheongsam, also known as a qipao, is a traditional Chinese dress that’s form-fitting and is often worn on special occasions
The garment has played a role in some of the most memorable films of our time


Although the cheongsam, also known as qipao, is no longer a common sight on the streets of Chinese cities, the form-fitting dress is still worn at weddings, important ceremonies and in Chinese costume drama films.


Asian cinema

Chinese language cinema

From In the Mood for Love to Rouge – five films that celebrate the cheongsam, or qipao

A cheongsam, also known as a qipao, is a traditional Chinese dress that’s form-fitting and is often worn on special occasions The garment has played a role in some of the most memorable films of our time

A cheongsam, also known as a qipao, is a traditional Chinese dress that’s form-fitting and is often worn on special occasions

The garment has played a role in some of the most memorable films of our time