It's November 5th, 1937, at a concentration camp in the British concession of Shanghai.

On a wall are the words: "Peace is over. The time for sacrifice has begun!"

Colonel Hsieh Chin-yuan, whose troops have run out of ammunition, has been forced to withdraw into the concession. He insists on holding a flag-raising ceremony on the athletic field, but the British won't permit it. Through the efforts of the beautiful Ch'in Feng, an ROC intelligence agent, an arrangement is worked out--

"In the past we raised a flag; now it will be only a rope," Hsieh tells his troops with great emotion. "The pole will be empty, but in our eyes and in our hearts the flag of the blue sky and white sun will be fluttering in the breeze!"

The flag-raising ceremony without a flag begins. Hsieh and the troops stand at attention, as does Ch'in Feng, tears in her eyes. Suddenly, an assassin appears on a roof opposite, aiming at Colonel Hsieh.

Ch'in Feng sees him and shouts, "Colonel, lie down!"

Hsieh ducks; the bullet hits the flagpole. The assassin fires again and wounds Hsieh in the arm.

Soldiers swarm around the colonel to protect him and carry him off the stand in a scene of confusion. . . .

"Cut!" cries Ting Shan-hsi, the director. The time shifts to the present. We're at the studios of the Central Motion Picture Corp. in Taipei, at the filming of their new movie The Flag Is Aflutter.

During the break, tourists and extras crane their necks and stare: "Wow! That's Lin Ch'ing-hsia! There's K'o Chun-hsiung!"

Lin Ch'ing-hsia, a hot film star in Hong Kong and Taiwan, plays the agent Ch'in Feng, woman of a thousand faces.

K'o Chun-hsiung, a veteran male lead, plays Colonel Hsieh, the same role he performed eleven years ago in the film Eight Hundred Heroes.

A strong cast is one of Flag's major drawing cards. Studio photos of the film's beauties Lin Ch'ing-hsia, Lu Hsiu-ling, and Hsia Wen-hsi have been appearing in all the magazines.

"Big stars are just the 'packaging' we hope will attract viewers to join us in commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the War and in letting another generation reflect on this period of history," says Nieh Yang-hsien, the film's executive producer.

Recalling unhappy memories isn't pleasant. "What's the point in opening up old wounds?" some people asked. But Central Motion Picture Corp. and Tonson Film Co. went ahead anyway. For Central Motion Pictures, filming one "political message" film a year is a duty, while for Tonson, which is privately owned, making this kind of movie can help to lift its image.

Once the decision had been made, the selection of Ting Shan-hsi as director was natural. Ting is one of the ROC's top war-movie directors, with a host of popular films to his credit.

Ting feels that the Sino-Japanese War is something that no Chinese must ever forget. "But that history is too distant from us now," he says. "It's especially hard for people born after the war to understand what it was like fifty years ago. That's why we need 'packaging'--to cut down audience resistance."

For Lin Ch'ing-hsia, who has been away from Taiwan for several years, joining The Flag Is Aflutter required some careful consideration. "I personally don't like 'political message' films," she says. "But this one feels a little different. And," she adds with a smile, "my part's a good one."

Spy-vs.-spy battles of wits have always been popular with viewers, and Ting has emphasized this aspect of the film. The story is based on history, but some of the action and characters are fictional. To lend verisimilitude, real soldiers are used as extras, and the score features several popular songs of the time.

No matter how good a film's packaging, its contents are still the key. The film's story goes like this:

After the Marco Polo Bridge incident of July 7, 1937, Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek led the soldiers and civilians of the whole country to the defense of the nation.

At that time, Major C. L. Chennault had come to assist China bearing photographs of harbors and strategic locations in Japan to use as information in future bombing missions. But this was discovered by the beautiful Manchurian princess Kawashima Yoshiko, and agents were ordered to capture Chennault and seize his materials.

Meanwhile, members of the Flying Tigers were arriving one after another in Shanghai. Ch'in Feng, commander of the Women's Defense Forces, was ordered to Shanghai to receive the Flying Tigers and to protect Chennault. At the same time, Kawashima, a master of disguise, was also sent to Shanghai. Chinese agents were on the alert, and Ch'in Feng longed to match wits with her.

The wealthy hostess of a night club in the British concession, Chin Yen-ling, had a talented friend, Wei Sheng, who came to Shanghai after the Marco Polo Bridge incident and helped her with her programs at the club. After Colonel Hsieh's retreat to Shanghai at the end of October and the bloody battle of the 800 heroes, Wei Sheng, moved by their sacrifice, wrote a patriotic song which lifted the spirits of the people of Shanghai.

Not long after, the ROC government prepared to withdraw from Nanking to Chungking. Wei Sheng asked Ch'in Feng to go along, but she refused, wishing to stay behind and kill Kawashima. As the war grew more and more furious, a fierce battle of wits began between the two agents. . . .

Wei Sheng left on a boat for the south, while Ch'in Feng remained in Shanghai to fight the enemy.

"Cases like theirs were too numerous to mention," Ting Shan-hsi exclaims with a sigh. One person's sacrifice often meant the breakup of a family, the end of a romance.

Rushing to make the July release date, the studio is hectic.

"The best war pictures succeed, not by their battle scenes, but by their depictions of human nature," Ting says with feeling. "Why do we want to do a good job? Because this is a part of history we mustn't forget!" He turns and walks over to the set.

And the scene shifts back fifty years, to 1937. . . .

[Picture Caption]

See the bricks under the soldiers' feet? They won't show up on the screen.

(Above) Lu Hsiu-ling (right) plays Chin Yen-ling, who is involved in a love triangle with Wei Sheng (acted by Lin Wei-sheng) and Ch'in Feng (acted by Lin Ch'ing-hsia).

(Below) Lin Ch'ing-hsia has a furious gun battle scene in the film.

(Above) The Hong Kong film star Hsia Wen-hsi, who plays Kawashima Yoshki o, is one of the film's drawing cards.

(Below) Colonel Hsieh Chin-yuan, played by K'o Chun-hsiung, conducts the "flag-raising ceremony without a flag" in the British concession.

Ting Shan-hsi (right), a superb war-movie director, makes a point.

（Above） Lu Hsiu-ling （right） plays Chin Yen-ling, who is involved in a love triangle with Wei Sheng （acted by Lin Wei-sheng） and Ch'in Feng （acted by Lin Ch'ing-hsia）.

（Below） Lin Ch'ing-hsia has a furious gun battle scene in the film.

（Above） The Hong Kong film star Hsia Wen-hsi, who plays Kawashima Yoshki o, is one of the film's drawing cards.

（Below） Colonel Hsieh Chin-yuan, played by K'o Chun-hsiung, conducts the "flag-raising ceremony without a flag" in the British concession.

Ting Shan-hsi （right）, a superb war-movie director, makes a point.