The Opium War (film)

The Opium War
Japanese film poster
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	鴉片戰爭
Simplified Chinese	鸦片战争
Literal meaning	opium war
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Yāpiàn Zhànzhēng
Directed by	Xie Jin
Written by	Zhu Sujin Ni Zhen Zong Fuxian Mai Tianshu
Produced by	Chen Zhigu
Starring	Bao Guo'an Lin Liankun Sihung Lung Bob Peck Simon Williams Shao Hsin Su Min
Cinematography	Hou Yong Shang Yong
Edited by	David Wu Qian Lili Zhang Longgen
Music by	Jin Fuzai Huang Hanqi
Production companies	Emei Film Studio Xie Jin / Heng Tong Film & TV Co.
Distributed by	Golden Harvest Mandarin Films (International) Co. Ltd.
Release date	1997 (1997)
Running time	150 minutes
Country	China
Languages	Mandarin English

The Opium War (鸦片战争) is a 1997 Chinese historical epic film directed by Xie Jin. The winner of the 1997 Golden Rooster and 1998 Hundred Flowers Awards for Best Picture, the film was screened in several international film festivals, notably Cannes and Montreal. The film tells the story of the First Opium War of 1839–1842, which was fought between the Qing Empire of China and the British Empire, from the perspectives of key figures such as the Chinese viceroy Lin Zexu and the British naval diplomat Charles Elliot.

Unlike many of its contemporaries, The Opium War was strongly supported by the state apparatus.^[1] Despite its clear political message, many Western commentators found the treatment of the historical events to be generally even-handed.^[2]

At the time of its release, The Opium War, with a budget of $15 million (USD), was the most expensive film produced in China.^[3] It was released to coincide with the Hong Kong handover ceremony in July 1997.