Air Hostess (1959)
| Air Hostess | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Evan Yang (Yi Wen) |
| Produced by | Robert Chung |
| Written by | Evan Yang (Yi Wen) |
| Starring | Grace Chang (Ge Lan) Roy Chiao (Qiao Hong) Kelly Lai Chen (Lei Zhen) |
| Music by | Min Yao |
| Cinematography | Chieh Fan |
| Edited by | Chao-Hsi Wang |
Production company | |
Running time | 1h 42min |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Mandarin |
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Air Hostess (Chinese: 空中小姐, Pinyin: Kongzhong Xiaojie) is a 1959 Hong Kong film directed by Evan Yang (Yi Wen) and starring Grace Chang (Ge Lan), Roy Chiao (Qiao Hong), and Kelly Lai Chen (Lei Zhen)[1]. Created by the MP&GI studios and shot in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand, this film was one of the few shot in color. The film showcases the female centric protagonist trend permeating Cathay Studios and Hong Kong Cinema at the time. This genre of film was named “wenyi pian” a terminology for melodrama centered around women.[2] These types of films filled with female protagonists dominated the studios in the 1950’s until the heavily male centered films began to take over later on in the later years. Air Hostess focus on a young woman asserting her independence by training to become an Air Hostess to earn her own money and travel the world instead of the traditional route of marriage upon graduation.
Cast and Roles[edit]
- Grace Chang as Lin Ke-Ping
- Julie Yeh Feng as Chu Hsin-Chuan
- Roy Chiao as Lei Tai-Ying
- Kelly Lai Chen as Li Wen-Pin
- So Fung as Chen Huan
- Hung Mei as Lin Ke-Ping’s mother
- Wu Chia-Hsiang as Chao Chun
- Yam Ho as Chao Chun’s man
- Yi Fung as Flying staff in training scene
- Lee Kwan as Flying staff in training scene
- Fong Wah as Huang Su
- Ding Ying as Liu Tsui-Ming
- Tong Chan as Miss Kang Si-Min
- Jeanette Lin Tsui as Herself
- Kao Hsiang as Passenger
- Yeung Yee-Muck as Pilot
- Wang Dan as Anxious passenger
- Man Sau as Women with handbag
- Tony Lee Wan-Miu as Party Guest
- Hsu Ko as Mr. Chin
- Bai Yu as he Meng Mei
- Luo Bi-Xia as Wang Nai-Li
Plot Overview[edit]
Lin Ke-Ping (Grace Chang) celebrates her graduation at a lively costume party, singing and dancing with her guests. She informs her mother that she plans on becoming an Air Hostess instead of marrying a rich man like her mother intends. During the party Ke-Ping meets a mysterious and handsome stranger in a pilot’s uniform named Lei Tai-Ying.
When Ke-Ping arrives at the competitive Air Hostess interview she meets with several other young women who also want the job. Many struggle with shyness and smiling, however Ke-Ping aces the trials with a sunny and respectful disposition. However, during the actual training portion of becoming a flight attendant, she faces difficulties with understanding that the Hostess's job is to serve and that the passengers are always right no matter the situation. Because of this, Ke-Ping writes a resignation letter and leaves it on the desk of the head flight attendant. However, after some reflection, Ke-Ping decides she wants to continue being a flight attendant and sneaks back into the office to take back her resignation letter before it gets processed.
While on her initial flights, Lin Ke-Ping faces some backlash with the way she treats passengers from the same pilot she met at the party, Lei Tai-Ying. He berates her and constantly finds fault within her actions, from how she serves coffee to her desire to sing and dance.
During her Air Hostess travels, Ke-Ping visits a variety of places from Taiwan to Singapore. While in these places, Ke-Ping makes the most of her independence by site seeing and attending parties alongside her crew. During these parties Ke-Ping often preforms, singing and dancing to show contentment and freedom in her life.
However after a flight delay in Hong Kong that forces Ke-Ping to miss her mother's birthday, she gets overwhelmed with the responsibilities of being an Air Hostess that has to follow so many rules and regulations while also satisfying guests. She declares her intentions to quit once again and goes to the flight attendant offices to do so. Although, the head flight attendant brings her to her office and recounts how she knew about the first resignation letter but ignored it because she knew Ke-Ping was a wonderful flight attendant. During the meeting, Ke-Ping and Tai-Ying's supposed relationship is brought up as is an accusation of Ke-Ping transporting fake jewelry.
After a small hiatus from flying, Tai-Ying convinces Ke-Ping to fly on one more flight. During the flight Tai-Ying shows her a passenger's stash of fake jade and the mystery of the jewelry rumor is solved. At the end, Ke-Ping and Tai-Ying make up their differences and apologize for being harsh toward each other. Additionally, Ke-Ping decides to keep her job as a flight attendant and receives an award for her achievements. Finally, the film ends with a wedding in the sky as Ke-Ping's shy friend, Chen Huen, gets married, walking down the plane aisle with Ke-Ping at her side.
Reception[edit]
Air Hostess was poorly received by the critics and audience alike. Many leftist papers called the movie nothing more than Taiwanese Propaganda and lent itself to anti-communism crusade[3]. Loke Wan Tho, the owner of Cathay, was also on the Board of Malayan Airlines, making it an all-around advertisement for the variety of operations he had stake in. Critics claim this approach alongside “weak script, tedious narrative style and dull camera movements” made Air Hostess a box office disappointment[3]. However, Air Hostess continues to have a small cult following among those who appreciate the vivid color schemes and stunning costuming.
References[edit]
- ↑ "Hong Kong Movie Database". Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Badley, Linda (2006). Traditions in World Cinema. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-2626-7. Search this book on
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Fu, Poshek (2002). The Cathay Story. Sai Wan Ho, Hong Kong: Hong Kong Film Archive. pp. 60–74. ISBN 962-8050-16-8. Search this book on
Air Hostess (1959)[edit]
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