The Mirror and the Lichee 1967
新陈三五娘
Movie queen Ivy Ling Po is ideally cast as a male scholar in this historical Huangmei Opera romance. It’s a tragic love story between the scholar and a local beauty (played by Fang Ying). He polishes mirrors as a pretext to get closer to his love, who signals her approval by tossing him a bunch of lichees. From that point on the course of true love proves operatically rocky, complete with murder and suicide.
Vocabulary
Filter the words you want to study before watching.
| 亲口 親口 | one's own mouth; fig. in one's own words; to say sth personally | |
| 几时 幾時 | at what time?; when? | |
| 到时候 到時候 | when the moment comes; at that time | |
| 父 父 | father; KangXi radical 88 | |
| 财 財 | wealth, valuables, riches | |
| 黄历 黃曆 | Chinese divination almanac | |
| 一声 一聲 | first tone in Mandarin (high, level tone) | |
| 裙 帬 | skirt, apron, petticoat | |
| 会心 會心 | knowing (of a smile, look etc) | |
| 心领 心領 | I appreciate your kindness (conventional reply to turn down an offer) | |
| 请便 請便 | Please do as you wish!; You are welcome to do whatever you like!; Please make yourself at home. | |
| 家居 家居 | home; residence; to stay at home (unemployed) | |
| 势 勢 | power, force; tendency | |
| 所知 所知 | known; what one knows | |
| 妻室 妻室 | wife | |
| 一方 一方 | a party (in a contract or legal case); one side; area; region | |
| 世家 世家 | family influential for generations; aristocratic family | |
| 不巧 不巧 | too bad; unfortunately; as luck would have it | |
| 在世 在世 | to be alive | |
| 过世 過世 | to die; to pass away | |
| 总得 總得 | must; have to; be bound to | |
| 状 狀 | form; appearance; shape; official | |
| 板子 板子 | board; plank; bamboo or birch for corporal punishment | |
| 胡 胡 | recklessly, foolishly; wildly | |
| 旧时 舊時 | in former times; the olden days | |
| 家传 家傳 | handed down in a family; family traditions | |
| 力行 力行 | to practice diligently; to act energetically | |
| 汤药 湯藥 | tisane; decoction (Chinese medicine) | |
| 订亲 訂親 | variant of | |
| 般 般 | sort, manner, kind, category | |
| 双眼 雙眼 | the two eyes | |
| 来世 來世 | afterlife; next life | |
| 秀 秀 | ear of grain; flowering, luxuriant; refined, elegant, graceful | |
| 前世 前世 | previous generations; previous incarnation (Buddhism) | |
| 信物 信物 | keepsake; token | |
| 道破 道破 | to expose; to reveal | |
| 志 志 | purpose, will, determination; annals | |
| 三代 三代 | three generations of a family; the three earliest dynasties (Xia, Shang and Zhou) | |
| 世交 世交 | (long time) friend of the family | |
| 养育 養育 | to rear; to bring up; to nurture | |
| 恩 㤙 | kindness, mercy, charity | |
| 吉 吉 | lucky, propitious, good | |
| 荣耀 榮耀 | honor; glory | |
| 不愿 不願 | unwilling | |
| 不死心 不死心 | unwilling to give up; unresigned | |
| 丫环 丫環 | servant girl; maid | |
| 梯 梯 | ladder, steps, stairs; lean | |
| 银两 銀兩 | silver (as currency) | |
| 领受 領受 | to accept; to receive | |
| 美意 美意 | goodwill; kindness |