Chinese Gay Movie Review #33: Winter Begonia, Part 2

Chinese Gay Movie Review is back from the dead! In a special extra-long edition. Here's our final thoughts on Winter Begonia (spoiler alert if you haven't finished the series!) And here is Part 1 of our review: • Chinese Gay Movie Revi...
SERIES
English Name: Winter Begonia (2020)
Chinese Name: 鬓边不是海棠红 (Bìn Biān Bùshì Hǎitánghóng, "The Hair at the Temples is Not Begonia-Red." A complex play on words representing the relationship between the two main characters).
Origin: China. Based on a BL novel and originally released online.
Where to Watch: TH-cam. One season, 49 episodes, 40 minutes each.
RATINGS
Writing/Storytelling: 8.5/10
Acting: 9/10
Hot Guys: 8/10
Overall: 8/10
Chinese Cultural Value: Depicts a fascinating period in Chinese history: the young republic of the early 1930s, when China is gradually modernizing and soon to be invaded by Japan and plunged into WW2. Opera is a common device in Chinese queer cinema, and this show references opera-centered queer films like Farewell My Concubine (1993) and Fleeing by Night (2000).
Recommended: Yes! The historical era is reason enough to watch, but also the high production values, great performances, relatively fast-moving plot, and fly-ass 1930s fashions.

[@saya1720_]

Thank you so much! It's hard enough to find any proper review and reaction videos to winter begonia. I am glad you enjoyed the drama. It has become one of my favourite cdramas. It feels so good to see someone FINALLY discuss all the beauty and the flaws of winter begonia in details without any bias 😭❤️

[@chinesegaymoviereviews9468]

Aww, thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed!

[@MsOceanstar]

I am a newbie to Cdramas! So happy to discover your channel and reviews! You guys are very entertaining as well. Love that you are east- west here, giving better perspectives on Winter Begonia which i am just now watching. I love the aesthetics of the opera singers, the beautiful outfits of the rich Chinese women of the era, and nuanced gay love! ❤️ i have to re-watch Farewell My Concubine…its been many years.

[@thespion]

Glad I found this series by you two....wish I had found it earlier in the pandemic!

[@chocostars1]

You know, I’ve missed you guys. I haven’t even watched Winter Begonia but I like watching your opinion.

[@chinesegaymoviereviews9468]

Aww, thanks for watching! Hopefully we will be back with more videos soon :)

[@stepmaster9988]

Nice review! I’m still watching and glad you liked it also. I loved the northern woman gangster who was masculine but was into men; as you say they did a great job turning gender stereotypes and gender hierarchies on their head 💕

[@icyamethyst1]

I highly recommend “world of honor” to you. It’s the best Chinese BL drama ever, with rating of 8.6 in Douban. It is a Wuxia (martial arts) drama and beautifully shot. You will enjoy the story

[@chinesegaymoviereviews9468]

We've been watching it! We'll do a review soon hopefully.

[@icyamethyst1]

@@chinesegaymoviereviews9468 look forward:) i like zhou Zishu a lot, he is not only beautiful but also soft and strong

[@megumim6795]

thank you so much for your final review!!!

[@catsidhe181]

woot! Welcome back! I'm a bit late XD but I'm very happy to see a new video from you!
Have you heard of a new BL wuxia series called "Word of Honor" by the way? It's the biggest thing in China right now, coming out of nowhere with no fanfare and no expectations, and yet is now even challenging The Untamed in popularity and boldness, many people are wondering how it got past the censors lol Would love to see you guys do a video on it and hear your thoughts on it!

[@chinesegaymoviereviews9468]

Thanks for watching! Hopefully more videos to come soon. We actually just started watching Word of Honor and we definitely plan on reviewing it :)

[@catsidhe181]

@@chinesegaymoviereviews9468 Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!!

[@ShinigamiNoS]

I hope you will review "Word of Honor" soon :) And "Immortality" when it comes out, same goes for "Winner is King". :)

[@chinesegaymoviereviews9468]

We've been watching it, we'll review soon :)

[@indoman6799]

It has been a while since you guys uploaded the latest review. Hope everything goes on well with you. Stay safe

[@chinesegaymoviereviews9468]

Thank you! We have been working on other stuff recently but we actually have a new review coming today :)

[@queerscreenvod9267]

Super vidéo :) On adore 🌈