SYNOPSIS:

Lilian works at a radio station in Shanghai in the ‘30’s. Her father is a professor who must leave her in China when he flees to the United States. A modern beauty like Tang Wei in the Ang Lee film, Lilian admires the starlets who frequent the Cathay hotel. She moves in with her cousin. The radio station is taken over by the Japanese and she contends with Colonel Taigan. When her cousin's habit bankrupts him, drug lords exact payment. Lilian falls into the clutches of triad king Big Ears Du, boss of the underworld. She escapes to a mission operated by nuns, the Door of Hope, where the residents make unique dolls for export. Each face is hand-carved and painted, and the clothes authentic. American daredevil pilot Joe "Foxy" Brandon has a dogfight over the city, watched by people on the roof of the hotel. Meeting in a Ming dynasty garden, Joe falls in love with “Lily.” As the Japanese take over, Joe and Lily rescue the orphans of the mission.