 |
The last film by Leo McCarey (AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER) picks up on earlier religious themes in the director's work. It follows Father O'Banion (William Holden, THE WILD BUNCH) to a mission in 1949 China, where he is to take over the position of the elderly Father Bovard (Clifton Webb, CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN, TITANIC), who is retiring. Along the way, a young girl named Siu Lan (France Nuyen, THE JOY LUCK CLUB) attaches herself to him; he takes her in, but is discomfited by her flirtatious advances. Upon arrival, she takes a position as cook at the mission, but before Bovard can abandon his post, Mao's Communist takeover begins. Chung Ren (Robbie Lee), following Mao's orders, leads a group of soldiers in taking over the mission, where he rapes Sui Lan, and she becomes pregnant. But when her son is born, the brutal soldier shows signs of a change of heart.
|
