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March Screening:
WOMEN FROM THE LAKE OF
SCENTED SOULS
When it comes to Chinese women's cinema, Women From the Lake of Scented Souls, directed by the leading figure of China's fourth generation director, Xie Fei, stands as an unavoidable historical benchmark. This March, we invite you to revisit this classic film with the 4K restoration version, bringing this 30-year-old masterpiece back to life on the big screen. Even more exciting, after the screening, Director Xie Fei will join us online for a live Q&A session with the audience! This is not just a screening—it's a precious evening of cross-Pacific dialogue with film history itself.
Date & Time: March 29, 2026 (Sunday) | 5PM PST
Location: The Culver Theater, 9500 Culver Blvd, Culver City, CA 90232
Admission: $15
*3-hour validated parking at INCE Parking Structure (9099 Washington Blvd, Culver City, CA 90232)
Women from the Lake of Scented Souls
香魂女 (1993)
*With director's Q&A after screening
4K Restoration
Director: Xie Fei 謝飛
Mandarin / 105min / Drama
With English subtitles
Logline:
Xiang Er Sao (Siqin Gaowa), who was sold into an arranged marriage at a young age, has had an unhappy life; yet, she takes comfort in knowing that she has built up a successful sesame oil mill. While running her business, Xiang also struggles to find a bride for her mentally challenged son. She eventually purchases Huanhuan (Wu Yujuan), a local peasant girl, to be the boy's wife. However, this decision leaves Xiang plagued with guilt, and the bitter Huanhuan rebels against her mother-in-law.
Trailer
In 1993, Chinese-language cinema triumphed at both the Berlin and Cannes film festivals, etching a legendary chapter in world film history. Among these achievements, Director Xie Fei's Women from the Lake of Scented Souls shares the Golden Bear with Ang Lee's The Wedding Banquet at the Berlin International Film Festival that year, basking in the same glorious spotlight. Three decades later, Women from the Lake of Scented Souls remains a milestone in Chinese feminist cinema.
This is not merely a film of "accusation." Xie Fei's brilliance lies in his nuanced portrayal of human complexity - Second Sister Xiang is both victim and perpetrator. The fleeting joy in her secret affair, the tears shed while confiding in Huanhuan on the rooftop, and the moment Huanhuan embraces her, saying, "Mother, I know the pain in your heart," elevate the film beyond simplistic moral judgment. The clandestine love in the reed marshes, the dusk settling over the water, and Huanhuan's desperate cry, "Who would want me now?" together weave a haunting saga of two generations of women trapped in a recurring cycle of fate.
Xie Fei once remarked, "To depict humanity, one must do so comprehensively, complexly, and truthfully—only then does it hold artistic value." This film is the ultimate testament to this philosophy. With a masterclass performance, Siqin Gaowa etches into Chinese film history a woman who is both formidable and fragile, shrewd and ignorant, detestable and pitiable.
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