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.
| 吩咐 吩咐 | to tell; to instruct; to command | |
| 人情 人情 | human emotions; social relationship; friendship; favor; a good turn | |
| 动静 動靜 | (detectable) movement; (sign of) activity; movement and stillness | |
| 墨 墨 | ink stick; China ink; corporal punishment consisting of tattooing characters on the victim's forehead | |
| 可恶 可惡 | repulsive; vile; hateful; abominable | |
| 何况 何況 | let alone; to say nothing of; besides; what's more | |
| 往事 往事 | past events; former happenings | |
| 无意 無意 | inadvertent; accidental; to have no intention of (doing sth) | |
| 瞒 瞞 | to conceal from; to keep (sb) in the dark | |
| 愈 愈 | the more...(the more...); to recover; to heal; better | |
| 迟早 遲早 | sooner or later | |
| 扮 扮 | to disguise oneself as; to dress up; to play (a role); to put on (an expression) | |
| 一早 一早 | early in the morning; at dawn | |
| 寻常 尋常 | usual; common; ordinary | |
| 亲手 親手 | personally; with one's own hands | |
| 花样 花樣 | pattern; way of doing sth; trick; ruse; fancy-style (as in 花样滑冰 figure skating) | |
| 感恩 感恩 | to be grateful | |
| 何必 何必 | there is no need; why should | |
| 糊涂 糊塗 | muddled; silly; confused | |
| 性命 性命 | life | |
| 丫头 丫頭 | girl; servant girl; (used deprecatingly, but sometimes also as a term of endearment) | |
| 临 臨 | to face; to overlook; to arrive; to be (just) about to; just before | |
| 虚 虛 | emptiness; void; abstract theory or guiding principles; empty or unoccupied; diffident or timid; false; humble or modest; (of health) weak; virtual; in vain | |
| 但愿 但願 | if only (sth were possible); I wish (that) | |
| 凤凰 鳳凰 | Fenghuang County in Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture 州 | |
| 滋味 滋味 | taste; flavor; feeling | |
| 规矩 規矩 | lit. compass and set square; fig. established standard; rule; customs; practices; fig. upright and honest; well-behaved | |
| 押 押 | to mortgage; to pawn; to detain in custody; to escort and protect; (literary) to sign | |
| 废 廢 | to abolish; to abandon; to abrogate; to discard; to depose; to oust; crippled; abandoned; waste | |
| 略 略 | brief; sketchy; outline; summary; to omit; (bound form before a single-character verb) a bit; somewhat; slightly; plan; strategy; to capture (territory) | |
| 功 功 | meritorious deed or service; achievement; result; service; accomplishment; work (physics) | |
| 铜 銅 | copper (chemistry); see also 红铜 | |
| 有意 有意 | to intend; intentionally; interested in | |
| 来临 來臨 | to approach; to come closer | |
| 催 催 | to urge; to press; to prompt; to rush sb; to hasten sth; to expedite | |
| 爹 爹 | dad | |
| 桩 樁 | stump; stake; pile; classifier for items | |
| 应付 應付 | to deal with; to cope | |
| 狮子 獅子 | Leo (star sign); Shihtzu township in Pingtung County 屏东县, Taiwan | |
| 抛弃 拋棄 | to abandon; to discard; to renounce; to dump (sb) | |
| 攻 攻 | to attack; to accuse; to study | |
| 都会 都會 | city; metropolis | |
| 娶 娶 | to take a wife; to marry (a woman) | |
| 独 獨 | alone; independent; single; sole; only | |
| 堂 堂 | (main) hall; large room for a specific purpose; relationship between cousins etc on the paternal side of a family; of the same clan; classifier for classes, lectures etc; classifier for sets of furniture | |
| 伴 伴 | partner; companion; comrade; associate; to accompany | |
| 丁 丁 | male adult; the 4th of the 10 Heavenly Stems 干; fourth (used like "4" or "D"); small cube of meat or vegetable; (literary) to encounter; (archaic) ancient Chinese compass point: 195°; (chemistry) butyl | |
| 望 望 | full moon; to hope; to expect; to visit; to gaze (into the distance); to look towards; towards | |
| 告 告 | to say; to tell; to announce; to report; to denounce; to file a lawsuit; to sue | |
| 释放 釋放 | to release; to set free; to liberate (a prisoner); to discharge |