A hugely popular film in China

The trivia on this page says that "Of all the classic Hollywood films ever made, this somewhat obscure title happens to be one of the most popular in China." I'm a Chinese. I can say that's very true. It is often used as English learning material here and is included in today's high school textbooks. But one thing in the trivia is incorrect. The Chinese love this film not because of the popularity of GWTW, on the contrary, it is this film that led many Chinese to seek other classic movies, especially for an older generation.

The film was introduced in China as early as 1940, the same year it was released in the US. From then on it was hugely popular in China. One interesting thing is, before the film came out, the distributors changed its title. They adopted one translation that combines an ancient Chinese love story together with the film plot, that is, Broken Souls at the Blue Bridge. As a very popular film, Waterloo Bridge even had a Chinese remake at that time. It was also adapted into Chinese traditional operas. It's believed that because of the film, Auld Lang Syne is widely known in China.

In the 1980s, the film was revived and widely played in the cinemas. Then on TV. It is said that audiences would write to the TV station, asking for rebroadcasting. Now I'm thirty and I can't remember how many times my parents have watched it when I was a kid. Not only the black and white version, but also the colorized one, which was then released on DVD by the China Audio and Video Recording Company, the only company that got the authorization by Warner Home Video.

Now my father still says Vivien Leigh is the most beautiful woman in the world, and Robert Taylor the most handsome man😂