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Synopsis
To impress their guests, a couple borrow an expensive pearl necklace for a party. Its disappearance sends them into debt, disgrace and a struggle to rebuild their lives. Their search for security reveals the distance between the society they want to join and the people who are actually willing to help them.
Cast
DirectorsLi Zeyuan
Inspirations
Maupassant's short story The Necklace supplies the starting point, but the film expands the situation into a Shanghai moral melodrama. Animated sequences, including pearls changing into written characters, make material desire visible rather than leaving it entirely to the intertitles.
Sources and availability
The synopsis and editorial text were written for this collection. The references below were cross-checked to identify the film and its copy; each editorial section identifies its reference.
Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.
The reference concerns the original work. Restorations, colorization, translations and other territories may have different conditions. This site uses the player enabled by the channel.
Availability checked on September 11, 2026.
