The Evolution of Old and New Shanghai Through Cinematic Metaphors
As one of the first cities to open up in China, Shanghai has a history of architectural development spanning over a century. In this essay, I hope to briefly explore the stark contrast between the old and new architectural landscapes of Shanghai as depicted in films, and the thoughts these depictions provoke.
In the contemporary perception of the new era, Shanghai mainly presents two faces: one is the image of “Old Shanghai” from the 1940s to the 1960s, captured in movies like The Bund and many other modern Chinese historical films such as The Eight Hundred. The architecture of this period primarily featured Chinese-style themes, with Western architectural styles also integrated into the buildings. Due to the historical characteristics of this period, the architectural scenes in these films always seem to be covered with a layer of ash produced by gunfire.
The second image is that of Shanghai after the economic reforms (from the 1970s to the present), epitomized by the Pudong architecture represented by the “Oriental Pearl”. Post-reform, Shanghai’s buildings in Pudong—modern, stylish, and international with towering skyscrapers—have become the model for a metropolitan city. The Huangpu River and the river bends of Lujiazui have been featured countless times in various movies, documentaries, and online videos. At this stage, the metaphor of Shanghai in video media has fully transformed into one of “financialization” and “modernization”.
What has allowed Shanghai to shift from one metaphor to another so distinctly within just half a century? Textually, this is inseparably linked to what can be described as the magical speed of Shanghai’s urban construction. However, deeper reasons that are seldom discussed anymore, akin to the large and small traditional archways flattened by the bulldozers of the new era, buried deep beneath the earth’s surface:
These still exist, even serving as foundations supporting the soaring new skyscrapers; yet, they leave no trace in the films of nowadays.
Li Zhengliang-3036128793