China A Soul Haunted by Painting is a China–Taiwan co-production — one of only a handful of such cross-border film titles indexed here.
Synopsis
画魂
At the beginning of the twentieth century, Yu-liang leaves a brothel in a small Chinese town, to become the second wife of Mr. Pan. While Pan is away at the revolution in Yunnan, Yu-liang learns to paint and takes art classes at the Shanghai Art Institute, until it is closed for painting nudes. Because she cannot bear him a son, Yu-liang leaves Pan to his first wife, and studies art in Paris, where she wins an award for a nude self-portrait. She returns to join Pan in Nanking in the 1930's, and becomes a Professor until it is discovered that she came from a brothel. She returns to Paris to live the rest of her life there, and finally gains a major exhibition of her work.
China × Taiwan Co-Production
Other China×Taiwan titles
Other Titles From Shanghai Film Studio
Drama + Romance in China
85 China titles in our catalog blend the Drama and Romance genres. Below: the top-rated of them (excluding A Soul Haunted by Painting itself).
The 1993–1995 China Window
In the crowded 1993-1995 China release window, A Soul Haunted by Painting sits at #14 of 16. The leaderboard below contextualises its neighbours.
The 1990s China Landscape
1994 was the decade’s peak output year for China — 8 titles released, including A Soul Haunted by Painting. Bars below show how the 1990s stacked up year by year (41 total).
Position in Catalog
Released alongside 7 other China films in 1994.
The 47th China title from China we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1935).
Our China catalog contains 946 titles in total (747 films).
Audience Engagement
10 audience reviews — more than 7% of China films in our index.
Popularity sits at the 9th percentile among China films.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #704 of 946 China films indexed here (26th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is -0.6 points below the China average of 6.7/10.
Among China Drama productions specifically: #439 of 547 (top 80%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | China |
|---|---|
| All Production Countries | China, France, Taiwan |
| Original Language | Chinese |
| Production Companies | Shanghai Film Studio |
| Runtime | 2h 10m |
| Release Date | March 12, 1994 |
| IMDb | tt0107158 |