will have to die as well for her role in Song's betrayal, along with Cuihua. As Shuisheng attempts to save her from her fate, he is thrown back and beaten. The film ends with Shuisheng tied to the sails of the ship as it sails back to Shanghai. The Boss takes Cuihua's young daughter with him, telling her that in a few years, she will become just like Jinbao. Cast Wang Xiaoxiao as Tang Shuisheng, the young teenage boy who serves as the film's protagonist and he falls under the spell of the boss's mistress, Jinbao. Gong Li as Xiao Jinbao, a Shanghai nightclub singer, Jinbao is the mistress of the Triad Boss. Li Xuejian as Uncle Liu, a servant to a Triad organization and Tang Shuisheng's uncle. Li Baotian as Tang the Triad Boss who hides a ruthless side. Sun Chun as Song, the Boss's number two man, Song's affair with Jinbao sets up the film's main conflict. Fu Biao as Zheng, the Boss's number three man. Yang Qianguan as Ajiao, a young girl living on the secluded island with her mother. Jiang Baoying as Cuihao, Ajiao's mother, a peasant woman who prepares meals for the Boss while he is hiding on his island estate. Production Shanghai Triad was director Zhang Yimou's seventh feature film. Zhang's previous film, To Live had landed the director in trouble with Chinese authorities, and he was temporarily banned from making any films funded from overseas sources. Shanghai Triad was therefore only allowed to continue production after it was officially categorized as local production. The director has since noted that his selection of Shanghai Triad to follow up the politically controversial To Live was no accident, as he hoped that a "gangster movie" would be a conventional film. The film was originally intended to be a straight adaptation of the novel Gang Law by author Li Xiao. This plan eventually changed with Gong Li's character becoming more important and the story's viewpoint shifting to that of the young boy, Tang Shuisheng. As a result, the film's title was changed to reflect its new "younger" perspective. Reception Though perhaps less well known than some of Zhang Yimou's more celebrated films (notably Ju Dou, To Live and Raise the Red Lantern), Shanghai Triad was nevertheless generally praised by critics upon its release, with a 90% "fresh" rating on the review-database, Rotten Tomatoes from 29 reviews. With