Two boys meet at an opera training school in Peking in 1924. Their resulting friendship will span nearly 70 years and endure some of the most troublesome times in China's history.

Leslie Cheung
as Cheng Dieyi / Xiao Douzi

Zhang Fengyi
as Duan Xiaolou / Xiao Shitou

Gong Li
as Juxian

Lü Qi
as Master Guan

Ying Da
as Manager

Ge You
as Master Yuan Shiqing

Lei Han
as Xiao Si

Tong Di
as Zhang the Eunuch

Yin Zhi
as Teenage Douzi

Ma Mingwei
as Young Douzi
Filipe Manuel Neto
**An excellent film.** I was really curious to see this movie, because as far as I can remember it was the first Chinese movie I saw. Before I saw it, I read a little about it, and I was quite impressed to see how the film did well in the West, and managed to infuriate Chinese Communist censors. ...