Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

Synopsis

Chinese/American drama based on the novel by Lisa See, which tells the tale of an enduring friendship between two women in 19th-century China. The film follows the lives of Snow Flower (Gianna Jun) and Lily (Bingbing Li), who as young girls are paired in sisterhood as laotong - or 'old sames'. Both isolated by their families and bound by the rigid conventions of a patriarchal society, the two invent a secret code, written inside the folds of a white silk fan, to communicate and support one another. The story is intercut with that of Sophia and Nina (also played by Jun and Li), two young women in modern Shanghai who struggle to maintain their childhood friendship in the face of their demanding careers and complicated love lives.