Green Snake

Tsui Hark's fantasy retelling of the Legend of the White Snake. The legend has been told in China for centuries: two snakes who become human, one white and one green. The white one marries a scholar and hides what she is. The difference here is the point of view: the narrative runs through the green snake. The younger sister does not understand why the elder binds herself so closely to human life, and tries to learn by imitating it. Against them is a Buddhist monk. Fa Hai wants both snakes erased from the world, and the film's moral argument comes from there: the man who preaches purification is its most rigid and most destructive figure. The source is Lilian Lee's novel. The visual construction is what gets discussed most: an artificial world built from colour, mist, water and silk. It is counted among the most extravagant examples of Hong Kong fantasy cinema. Maggie Cheung plays the green snake and Joey Wong the white. A visually rich work for anyone who likes Hong Kong cinema and adaptations of legend. For a viewer expecting realism, the film is built entirely in the studio and never tries to look real.