LADY FROM CHUNGKING

During World War II, a pair of American airmen, members of the famous Flying Tigers, First American Volunteers Group (AVG), are shot down and captured near a simple, rural village in Japanese-occupied China.

Brave Chinese guerrillas, led by Madame Kwan Mei (Anna May Wong), fight against the brutal tyranny of the occupying Japanese forces and plan to help the two downed airmen escape.

Mei and her resistance force hope to win the aid of the Americans as Kaimura 'the Butcher', a Japanese General arrives in the village, a sure sign that a major offensive will take place in that area.

She decides to impersonate an aristocrat, in order to get close to the general and to win his trust in order to gain his confidence and learn the details of his savage plans.

An interesting slice of history that let's us look back at popular public opinion at a terrible time and the work produced by a poverty row production.

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WHAT MAKES LADY FROM CHUNGKING SO GREAT

The movie gets right into the action with an aerial dogfight in which planes are shot down, a pilot bails out of a plane and parachutes to safety. A watching Japanese soldier, on the ground below, sees the aeronaught* gently floating to safety and takes aim with his rifle, planning to shoot him before he lands. Will he succeed in picking off the fearless flyer? Or does the airman have a guardian angle looking out for him?

(*aernaught is a word I just made up on the fly while writing this.)

The ending moments of Lady From Chungking is also quite unexpected. For me, it was a poignant ending to a short length flick (run time is just sixty-six minutes) that is largely a World War II propaganda piece. Watch it for yourself and let me know what you think.