Zhao Lei

Zhao Lei

Birth : 1928-01-01, 中国, 湖北, 荆州

Death : 1996-06-24

History

Zhao Lei (Chinese: 趙雷; Wade–Giles: Chao Lei; 1928 – 24 June 1996) was a Chinese actor who was one of the most popular male leads in the cinema of Hong Kong and Taiwan in the 1950s and 60s, often called the "Film Emperor".

Profile

Zhao Lei

Movies

Just Heroes
Boss Cao
The assassination of a gang lord triggers a power struggle amongst his men. Who will win the game the righteous or the villain?
The Imperious Princess
Emperor
Taiwanese huangmei opera starring Ivy Ling Po.
In The Beginning
Fantasy film from Taiwan, featuring the Chinese creation mythology of Pangu and Nüwa.
Immortal Warriors
Immortal Warriors is a Taiwanese Martial Arts movie.
Dream of the Red Chamber
Master Jia
Taiwanese huangmei opera film.
The Delivery
Captain
HK action movie about drug trafficking.
The Valiant Ones
Emperor [guest]
A righteous husband-and-wife swordfighting duo struggle to protect China from the machinations of Japanese pirates and corrupt officials.
Cheat to Cheat
Hong Kong comedy directed by Li Han-Hsiang.
Jade Dragon
Deng Da-Shuo
Old school weepy sword fighting epic with Melinda Chen Man Ling, Cathay's answer to Cheng Pei Pei.
Red Plum Pavilion
Pei Shun-Ching
Li is a beautiful young woman who is engaged to a handsome scholar, Pei Shunqing. However, a rich evil man, Jia Sidao, is attracted by Li's beauty and wants to take Li as his concubine. Pei and Li then come to discuss the matter and decide to flee, but they are kidnapped by Jia's men before they can escape. Jia threatens to kill Pei, and Li finally yields but requests to see Pei for the last time. During their short conversation Li tries to persuade Pei to leave, but he insists that he will not leave without her. Li tells him that she has promised to be Jia’s concubine. Pei has to depart, angry and disappointed. Later, Li tries to kill Jia with his sword before their wedding but she is stabbed to death instead. Li's ghost then returns to avenge Jia and his men by burning them until only ashes remain.
Travels with a Sword
Chang Kuei-Yin
Travels with a Sword is a Hong Kong Martial Arts movie starring Sammo Hung
The First Sword
Xie Wu-Yang
During a battle with Wu Qiong, the king of poison, Xie Wuyang, the chief of the Golden Dragon Clan is poisoned. His junior, Tong Wanling risks her life to save him and becomes poisoned herself. At his wit's end, Wuyang seeks Wanling's grandparents for help. Meanwhile, Yan Zongqi plots to overthrow Wuyang as the chief of the Golden Dragon Clan and schemes with Wu Qiong to obtain the secret manual of the Clan.
蘇小妹
The Magic Fan
Liu Zigu
This was an adaptation of a ghost story, “A Xiu”. Liu Zigu is on his way to visit his uncle and is attracted by a beautiful girl, A Xiu. Liu meets A Xiu again in a paper fan shop owned by A Xiu's father. Liu goes to the shop every day to buy a fan and see A Xiu. One day, Liu follows his uncle to a matchmaker, who arranges for A Xiu to become his bride. The following day, Liu and A Xiu visit a temple where they meet a ghost who looks very similar to A Xiu. On the wedding day, the ghost disguises itself as A Xiu to spoil her marriage with Liu. Finally, the ghost is in the custody of a magic fan, and Liu and Xiu complete their wedding.
Passion
Film directed by Chia-hsiang Wu
Lady in the Moon
Archer Hòu Yì
Chang E is a fairy in the moon. One day she sneaks to the earth where she meets a talented archer, Hou Yi, and falls in love with him. At that time, there are nine suns in the sky and they cause serious droughts on earth. Chang then pleads with the Heavenly Empress for some magic arrows so that Hou can shoot down the spare suns. After that Hou becomes a king with overwhelming support from the people. Later, Hou becomes increasingly cruel and corrupt after ascending to the throne. He wages wars on neighbouring kingdoms and drives his people to extreme misery and hardships. Chang has tried to stop him but fails. At the end, she takes Hou’s magic arrows and returns to the moon.
Beauty of Beauties
Winner of the Golden Horse Best Film Award in 1965.
A Beggar's Daughter
Mo Ji
This is an adaptation of the folk story, “Jin Yu Nu beats her heartless groom with a cane”. Jin Yu Nu, a beggar’s daughter, is a beautiful and kind girl. On a snowy day she saves the life of a poor scholar, Mo Ji. When Mo recovers, he marries Jin with love and gratitude. Mo wins the third place in the imperial examinations, but now he is looked down upon because his wife is a beggar's daughter. Extremely embarrassed and ashamed, Mo wants to divorce but has no excuse. Jin then jumps into the river and Mo has deep regrets but it is too late. Later, Mo’s senior Ambassador Lin appreciates his talents and wants to marry him his daughter. On the wedding night, the bride orders Mo to kneel in her room and beats him hard with a cane. Not until then does Mo know his bride is actually Jin, who has been saved by Lin. At the end, Lin knows Jin still loves Mo and helps the couple reunite.
Beyond the Great Wall
Emperor Yuan Ti
Beyond the Great Wall is a true story based on how Wang Chao-chun sacrificed her love and life for the good of the Chinese people during war time fears between China and the Huns.
Romance of the Forbidden City
Emperor Shunzhi
Hong Kong drama directed by Wong Tin-Lam.
The Story of Sue San
Wang Chin-Lung
This gripping story centers on the romance between Wang Chin Lung and Sue San. Although they may be perfectly matched when it comes to their love for one other, the two come from remarkably different social ranks. While Chin Lung is the son of a respected government official, Su San is a prostitute, albeit a famous one.
啼笑因缘
Ti xiao yin yuan xia ji
Continuing the story of Part I, the plots follows the tragic fate of teahouse songstress Shen, who is forced to become the mistress of the evil warlord Liu. When the latter discovers that she has had a secret rendezvous with her lover Fan, he tortures her to insanity. A fine melodrama, indeed the best a studio can offer in its time, The Story of Three Loves is also the last film of screen diva Grace Chang who plays two roles, the tender and affectionate Shen, and the arrogant and spoiled He...
The Magic Lamp
Erlang, Vanguard of Heaven
Adapted from one of China's most well-known fairy tales, the Goddess of Mount Hua falls in love with a young mortal scholar Liu Yanchang and gives birth to a baby son, Chenxiang. When Chenxiang grows up, he seeks to unravel the mystery surrounding his mother whom he has never met.
Lady with the Lute
Zhao’s husband goes to the capital to take the imperial examination but doesn’t come back. Due to famine, Zhao has to leave her hometown and find her husband, playing her lute for a living.
Empress Wu
Emperor Tang Kao Tsung
The renowned Li Li Hua plays Wu Ze Tian, the most famous woman in China's four thousand year history.
Ye ban ge sheng - Shang ji
Sung Tan-ping
Essentially an adaptation of Gaston Leroux's classic The Phantom of the Opera, Mid-Nightmare is set in a Huangmei diao teahouse theatre, which an embittered and horribly disfigured ex-performer ‘haunts', looking to extract revenge on his enemies and falling in love with a talented and beautiful, but ultimately unattainable, ingénue.
Madam White Snake
Hsu Hsien
This Classic Seductive tale of two snakes who assume human forms will send chills of pleasure down viewers' backs. The Lovely Linda Lin Dai (Les Belles, The Kingdom And The Beauty) and margaret Tu Chuan (The Dream of The Red Chamber) play the two sister serpents, Pak Su-cheng and Ching Ching. Su-cheng meets Hsu Hsien (Chao Lei) one day and recognizes him as her savior in another life 1,000 years ago. She marries him to reward him but the snake-human union brings about problems beyond imagination.
The Dream of the Red Chamber
2nd Master Jia Zheng
The Ching Dynasty novel The Dream of The Red Chamber is not only the most widely read, but also the most filmed book in Chinese history. The sprawling love story has proven a challenge to many filmmakers, but this version is acclaimed as the most successful. A sumptuous feature which took three years of planning and another for production, it was a hugely popular and critical hit which still stands out as a classic of both 18th century literature and 1960s moviemaking.
The Magnificent Concubine
Assassin
Perhaps the most notorious concubine in Chinese history, Yang Guifei set a pudgy standard of beauty in her days of glory during the Tang dynasty. The Emperor Minghuang was so besotted with the woman that when An Lushan stages his rebellion against the empire, the ruler takes Yang Guifei along with his imperial entourage in an escape to the mountainous area of modern-day Sichuan, and sanctuary of sorts. But the concubine had roused the jealousy of the court and unfortunately for her and to the great sorrow of the king, her brother and others among the king's retainers demanded she be strangled to death while they were still in the mountains. This is the story told in this interesting Taiwanese adaptation by director Li Han-hsiang (Li Hanxiang).
The Pistol
Bus passenger
Long unemployed and stone-broke, Shen Jiaguang is dealt a further blow when his wife Lu Xiaoyin has fallen seriously ill and their son Xiaoguang has to quit school.
Yan zi dao
Insp. Li Te-Biao
The hunt for The Swallow Thief.
The Enchanting Shadow
Ning Caichen
A young scholar spends the night in a creepy temple that is said to be haunted. He doesn't believe in the rumors, but after running into a Taoist swordsman, he meets a beautiful lady ghost.
The Kingdom and the Beauty
Chu Te Cheng
This is a musical about a young emperor who is lured via stories told to a place called Kiang-Nan by his royal tutor. The empress mother has the tutor go to Kiang-Nan to bring him back.
The Stolen Love
Early Shaw Brothers drama
An Appointment After Dark
Wan Jialiang, a factory worker, and Lu Xiuzhen fall in love and live together. Hou Liang is supported by Dong Yaqin, his cousin, and their lives improve. Desperate to get rid of Jane, who is pregnant, Jialiang plans to make her fall into the sea and die.
Diau Charn
吕布
Based on Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Diau Charn is a sublime retelling of a familiar tale with iconic actress Linda Lin Dai (Lam Doi) in the titular role of Diau Charn, one of the four storied beauties of ancient China.
A Kiss for Me
A Shaw and Sons production
The Circus
Zhao Ren (Flying Trapezes King)
A Shaw and Sons production
The Lady of Mystery
Spies, Military Documents and Traitors.
He Has Taken Him for Another
A Shaw and Sons production.
A Mellow Spring
Gao Lang
A Shaw Brothers production
Miss Evening Sweet
A Shaw and Sons production.
Springtime in Paradise
A Shaw and Sons production
Lady in Distress
Geng Hu
A Shaw Brothers production.
Beyond the Blue Horizon
A Shaw and Sons production
Meet Me After Spring
This is a drama about parents disapproving a young couple's relationship and the unfortunate consequences that it has.
A Lonely Heart
Jing Shan
A Shaw and Sons production.
Fruit of Marriage
A woman is fired from her job because she's pregnant. The husband, who's a teacher, needs to get another part-time job as a waiter, to cover the expenses which causes problems at his school. He starts to resent children but there's hope as the husband is able to get another job and start to appreciate his family...
Forever Goodbye
Forever Goodbye 自 君 別 後 (1955) aka Since You Went Away is a Hong Kong Mandarin-language drama film directed by Wang Yin, filmed in Australia and produced by Shaw Brothers Studio. It stars Sek Ying, Chao Lei, Yang Chi-Ching and Wu Chia-Hsiang. This is loosely based on John Luther Long's "Madame Butterfly".
Beyond the Grave
Yang Wei
This is a Historical Drama that was written and directed by Doe Ching. It was produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio.
Marriage Angle
Wen Zi-Yang
Marriage Angle is a Hong Kong Mandarin-language feature film of the drama genre, written and directed by Wang Yin, produced by Shaw Brothers Studio, Liu Chi and Chow Sze-Ching were the cinematographers.
Shadow in Her Heart
Xu Dehuai
Temptation (誘惑) is a 1954 Hong Kong drama film directed by Doe Ching. The film was produced by Runde Shaw for Shaw & Sons Co. Ltd. and is based on the screenplay by Doe Ching and the original story by Hsu Hsu.
Girls in Transformation
Girls in Transformation is about an experiment conducted by assistant professor at the Shi Liangde University to demonstrate her "non-hereditary human theory," in transforming rural girls into modern women.
The Third Life
Wu Dehua is a frustrated young man who has experienced abandonment and crime and starts having suicidal thoughts. However, with the help of the nurses who cared for him, he's understanding the meaning of helping others and dedicating himself to them.
Beauty in the Maelstrom
Wei Zhong Hua
A Shaw and Sons production about a couple who loves each other but end up marrying different people because of parental pressures.