Director: Frank Borzage
Starring: Victor Mature, Li Li Hua, Ward Bond, Stuart Whitman
Running Time: 99 minutes
Synopsis: The setting is western China in 1943, during World War Two. Captain Cliff Brandon (Victor Mature) leads a US air cargo crew resupplying Allied forces. Cynical and gruff, Cliff inadvertently buys the housekeeping services of Shu-Jen (Li Li Hua), a local young woman from a poor but proud family. Father Cairns (Ward Bond) runs the local mission and helps Cliff understand his obligations, while errand boy Ellington provides translation. Initially dismissive and not interested in having Shu-Jen around, Cliff gradually starts to appreciate her commitment to servitude, and falls in love.
What Works Well: Director Frank Borzage steers the unlikely cross-cultural romance towards a few poignant moments with obvious affection for his subjects. Cliff's weariness reflects the rigours of war, and he crew's interactions with ambulance service nurses contain crass commentary about wartime romance as a short term contract with financial benefits.
What Does Not Work As Well: Victor Mature's performance is often boorishly superficial, and apart from Ward Bond, most of the secondary acting is theatrically wooden. The Chinese characters are treated as submissive and differential, and Cliff falls in love with a woman because she is fully dedicated to his domestic comfort although he cannot actually communicate with her. The action scenes (mostly in the third act) are a mishmash of archival footage and clumsy set-bound antics.
Key Quote:
Cliff (talking to Father Cairns about Shu-Jen): With her it's different...all she wants to do is give.
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