In 1930s Shanghai, 'The White Countess' is both Sofia, a fallen member of the exiled Russian aristocracy, and a nightclub created by a blind American diplomat who asks Sofia to be the centerpiece of the world he wants to create.
Cinematography
Shanghai glows with amber nostalgia; every frame drips with period detail.
Acting
Ralph Fiennes's blind Jackson never overplays; Richardson's Sofia carries quiet ruin.
Writing
Kazuo Ishiguro's script builds worlds in what characters almost say.
Director
James Ivory
Ralph Fiennes
Todd Jackson
Natasha Richardson
Countess Sofia Belinskya
Hiroyuki Sanada
Matsuda
Lynn Redgrave
Olga Belinskya
Vanessa Redgrave
Princess Vera Belinskya
Madeleine Potter
Grushenka
Allan Corduner
Samuel Feinstein
John Wood
Prince Peter Belinskya
Lee Pace
Crane
Aislín McGuckin
Maria
Ying Da
Kao
Terence Harvey
Walters
Dragan Mićanović
Ilya
Wang Luoyong
Liu
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was the final Merchant-Ivory production with producer Ismail Merchant, who died during post-production.
The real White Russian émigré community in 1930s Shanghai numbered around 25,000, many reduced to taxi dancing and nightclub work.
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