The King of Masks

From China with love comes this heartwarming gem set in the 1930s about a venerable street performer named Wang (Zhu Xu) who is a master of the ancient art of "face-changing," i.e., blink-of-an-eye transformations from one masked character to another (a wonder to see, incidentally). Bound by tradition not to reveal his secrets outside the family, Wang is without a male heir disciple. Urged not to "let the magic die," he purchases for five dollars on the black market, "Doggie," a devoted child to whom he promises to give "my love and my art." Outraged when he discovers that his protégé is, in fact, a girl, Wang tries to abandon her, but her pathetic plight (she has been sold seven times) compels him--albeit reluctantly--to change his mind, and he teaches her gymnastics (enchanting co-star Zhou Ren-ying is an acrobat in the famed Peking Opera) and incorporates her into his act. Those who were moved by Kolya and Central Station, two other foreign films in which curmudgeonly adults were redeemed by a child, will want to try The King of Masks on for size. Warmly recommended. (K. Lee Benson)[DVD Review—Apr. 7, 2015—First Run , 102 min., in Mandarin w/English subtitles, not rated, DVD: $24.95—Making its latest appearance on DVD, 1996's The King of Masks features a fine transfer but no extras. Bottom line: a heartwarming long out-of-print foreign film makes a welcome return.]