The film opens with a scene of the three Soong sisters in their childhood in the late Qing dynasty. Their father, Charlie Soong, demonstrates the wealth and prestige of his family by running one of the most successful printing businesses. The sisters later travel abroad to attend Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia, United States. Of the three sisters, the eldest, Soong Ai-ling, is the first to get married in 1914. Her husband is K'ung Hsiang-hsi, a wealthy banker and descendant of Confucius. Sun Yat-sen is a fugitive of the weakening Qing government and he lives in exile in Japan. He weds Soong Ching-ling, despite stern opposition from Charlie Soong. After the Qing dynasty is overthrown by the Xinhai Revolution in 1911, Sun becomes the Republic of China's first provisional president and founds the Kuomintang. Sun dies of liver cancer in 1925 and leaves his wife with his dying wish of Chinese reunification. Chiang Kai-shek succeeds Sun Yat-sen as the new chief of the Kuomintang. In 1927, he marries Soong Mei-ling, the youngest of the three sisters. The Chiang couple oppose the Communist Party. The widowed Soong Ching-ling often quarrels with the family, accusing Chiang Kai-shek and his followers of persecuting the Communists and hindering the Chinese reunification. She leaves the Kuomintang and openly voices dissent against Chiang. The three sisters were hardly reunited again, except at their parents' deathbeds and on other special occasions. While the Kuomintang and Communists are fighting with each other, the Empire of Japan takes advantage of the situation to invade China in the 1930s. In 1936, Chiang Kai-shek is kidnapped by Zhang Xueliang in the Xi'an Incident. He is forced to make peace with the Communists and focus on dealing with the Japanese invaders, leading to the Second Sino-Japanese War. The Chinese Civil War continues after the Japanese surrender in 1945 until around late 1949. The film ends with actual footage of the Kuomintang relocating the government of the Republic of China to Taiwan, and a quick glimpse of Communist leader Mao Zedong proclaiming the People's Republic of China on 1 October 1949 in Beijing.
While the focus is on the politics and political figures of the Republic of China, the film is heavily influenced by Chinese politics in the 1990s. Its release in 1997 coincided with the British transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China. The desire to start relations on favorable grounds may have created some biased screenwriting, even though the perspective will vary depending on the audience. Lines such as "Before we were slaves of Old China. Now we are slaves of slaves of Old China" may have multiple meanings. The film seems to suggest that regardless of past differences and conflicts, there were strong ties that prevailed because of familial love. Another feature worth noting is the characterisation of historical figures. Sun Yat-sen, Soong Ching-ling and Zhang Xueliang are portrayed as noble individuals while Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Mei-ling are portrayed less favourably. A reason for this may be that filming took place in Beijing, where the Chinese government imposed rules on the portrayal of controversial figures such as Chiang Kai-shek. In fact, director Mabel Cheung has stated that in the 14 minutes that were cut from the final release, there were scenes of romance between Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Mei-ling. The Soong Sisters presents one interpretation of the 1936 Xi'an Incident as the event was never documented. Other pivotal moments include the founding of the Republic of China in 1911, the Kuomintang's Northern Expedition in 1926–27 against the Beiyang government and other warlords, and the 1931 Mukden Incident which marked the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War. The film was not released in cinemas in the United States and United Kingdom.
Perspective
The film has been characterised as having a feminist stance. Apart from the sisters, there were also their three brothers, who were equally prominent in the Republic of China. None from the latter group appear or are mentioned in the film. Scenes of bloodshed were toned down to appeal to a mass audience for educational purposes, and the film avoids describing the violence associated with that era. Key figures from the Communist Party such as Mao Zedong, Zhu De and Zhou Enlai do not make any appearances in the film, even though historically they played significant roles in the Xi'an Incident. Instead, the Communists are portrayed as a whole entity without any personification. On most accounts, those who support the Communist Party are portrayed as victims at the mercy of Chiang Kai-shek and the Kuomintang.
History inaccuracy
When the sisters are handing out military equipment to the National Revolutionary Army during a parade, some of the helmets appear to be U.S. M1 helmets, even though the M1 was not issued in the U.S. military until 1941. The standard combat helmet worn by Chinese soldiers at the time was the German-made Stahlhelm.
