Shanghai, The Roaring 20's 2009

A French documentary on the history of Shanghai in the 20s and the 30s naturally puts its emphasis on the French Concession. Du Yuesheng (1888-1951) was born in Pudong to become the godfather of the powerful Green Gang Triad, aka the Shanghai city boss, monopolising the most profitable opium trade on the one hand and assisting the French police in maintaining a social order of sorts in the French Concession. The legend of Du Yuesheng represents the epitome of Shanghai as "Pearl/Paris of the Orient," continuously fascinating the West. The shocking exposé written by Albert Londres (1884-1932) and his subsequent inexplicable death further adds mystique to the mesmerising city.