Enter the Clowns (2001, China)

Cui Zi’en directed this groundbreaking (for the People's Republic of China) film with a heavy transsexual theme. Like many films of this genre with a message, it doesn't necessarily make entertaining viewing, and there isn't really much of a plot.

The opening scene involves Xiao Bo with his dying father who asks to be called mother and for Bo to apply make-up. After saying "My biggest regret is that I was never able to breast-feed you," he asks Bo to give him a blow-job and a few minutes later he returns the compliment.

Xiao Bo lives with Nana, and it emerges that Nana was previously a man, and that they had a gay relationship. Nana has now had a sex-change, but Bo isn't sure that this is what he wanted. In fact the acting during this revelation is pretty unconvincing and frankly boring, and the hand-held camera work only accentuates the amateurish feel of the screenplay.

Nana is played by Na-ren-qi-mu-ge; she looks exceptionally convincing as a female; I have been unable to ascertain her birth gender.

Meanwhile Ru Meng Ling is making a female-to-male sex change.

The Cantonese title is Chou jue deng chang.

HF October 2005

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