Butterfly

Completed2004Hong Kong129 min

Flavia has built an outwardly settled life as a teacher, wife and mother, but an encounter with free-spirited musician Yip brings a…Read more +Read less −

Flavia has built an outwardly settled life as a teacher, wife and mother, but an encounter with free-spirited musician Yip brings a long-suppressed part of herself into focus. Their attraction draws Flavia back to memories of a formative relationship with another girl and the choices that carried her away from it. As past and present begin to speak to each other, she has to decide whether the security of her current life can accommodate a more honest understanding of desire. This Hong Kong drama follows love as both a rediscovery and a challenge, asking what becomes possible when a woman stops treating her own feelings as an inconvenience.

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Drama Romance

Sapphic characters & cast

Josie Ho

as Flavia

Main sapphic character

Performer publicity portrait via Rotten Tomatoes; photographer/rights unverified

Tian Yuan

as Yip

Main sapphic character

Performer publicity portrait via Rotten Tomatoes; photographer/rights unverified

YOUR FIRST LOOK

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BEHIND THE SCENES

Details & credits

Country: Hong Kong
Language: Cantonese, Mandarin
Premiere: 2004-12-02
Runtime: 129 minutes

Butterfly promotional artwork via IMDb; photographer and reuse rights unverified

Artwork source & permission status

Editorial review approved — rights not independently confirmed

Butterfly promotional artwork via IMDb; photographer and reuse rights unverified

Original publication ↗

Sources & editorial notes (3)

Last researched 2026-11-03. Editorially approved.

year: Film production/distributor/festival: identity and substantive sapphic lead evidence, checked 2026-11-03
genres: Film production/distributor/festival: identity and substantive sapphic lead evidence, checked 2026-11-03
status: Film production/distributor/festival: identity and substantive sapphic lead evidence, checked 2026-11-03
country: Film production/distributor/festival: identity and substantive sapphic lead evidence, checked 2026-11-03
language: Film production/distributor/festival: identity and substantive sapphic lead evidence, checked 2026-11-03
description: Film production/distributor/festival: identity and substantive sapphic lead evidence, checked 2026-11-03
trailer url: Exact film MUBI trailer page with nonempty film-specific trailer asset; checked 2026-11-03
western cast: Exact film cast and character / selected release reference; namesake and edition checks in notes
premiere date: Exact film cast and character / selected release reference; namesake and edition checks in notes
runtime minutes: Film production/distributor/festival: identity and substantive sapphic lead evidence, checked 2026-11-03
representation type: Film production/distributor/festival: identity and substantive sapphic lead evidence, checked 2026-11-03