That most of the threads here talk about how The Cheng Huan should've been an Asian man! Did you guys miss the whole story or what? Is this the only thing we're caring about in this film? Especially for a film made in 1919, I mean hello racism was still very much rampant back then. Imagine if an Asian actor did play the leading role! Imagine the outrage and the possible hate crimes against this man that there would be?
shareYes, silly to be outraged over such a thing happening 95 years ago! It is what it is, and that's the way things had to be or the film would have probably not been made. Yes, casting Japanese Sessue Hayakawa could potentially have been done, but it would have made the film much more controversial and it wouldn't have been much better either, since Cheng Huan is Chinese. It should be possible to enjoy the film in all its pathos, with its classic performances, without having to drag political correctness into it at this late date.
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