From the casual chat between the male protagonist and his wife at the beginning of the film, it can be seen that what Westerners think of China, or Easterners, is arrogant and poor, but as a Westerner, the perspective when they say this is contemptuous and arrogant. The Western world at that time believed that Eastern women were humble and obedient. In the long run, coupled with the influence of "Mrs. Butterfly", there is a misunderstanding in the male protagonist's heart: Oriental women are willing to do anything for the superior white men. When she learned that her lover for many years was a spy, Song Liling disguised herself as a woman just to spy on him to tease him, and stripped naked in the car to humiliate him again with a man's body, then she realized that everything was her own fantasy. The male protagonist finally realized that he was the teased Madam Butterfly, and finally committed suicide in prison.
It is not difficult for the audience to see that Song Liling is disguised as a woman, why did the male protagonist never doubt it?
"Do you know why Hua Dan is always played by men? That's because only men know how women should react."
In fact, the male protagonist didn't take a close look at her. Although Song Liling looks like a man, she frowns and smiles, and her every move is more feminine than a woman. It is also an irony that the male protagonist has always been addicted to the fantasy of oriental women and deceived himself.
"Mrs. Butterfly" in Jun Butterfly runs through the whole film. In the film, "Mrs. Butterfly" tells the story of a Japanese female geisha who fell in love with a white American, and was abandoned and committed suicide. In the film, Gao Renni, as a French white, was teased and abandoned by an oriental "woman", and finally committed suicide in prison in despair.
The film reflects the interlacing of many Eastern and Western concepts and the prejudice of different regions. Through the reversal of Song Liling's male body, it effectively countered the Westerners' self-perceived "correct" interpretation of the image of Oriental women.
So in the end, does Gao Renni still love Song Liling?
I thought, I still love it. When his beloved Song Liling "turns" into a man, he will become a woman, and will always become the Mrs. Butterfly in his heart.
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