FAN TAN

Anatole ''Annie'' Doultry is in his early 50s, a man of imposing physical presence and a reputation on the high seas from the Philippines to Shanghai. It is 1927, and while serving six months in a hellish Hong Kong prison he saves the life of a Chinese prisoner. The prisoner''s employer happens to be Madame Lai Choi San: beautiful, ruthless and shrewd, she is one of the most notorious gangsters in Asia. When Annie gets out of prison, she thanks him with an offer of inconceivable wealth if he will join her in the biggest act of piracy of her career. Madame Lai is a seductive and powerful ally, but Annie is about to discover that she can be an even more powerful-and dangerous-enemy. With his longtime collaborator, screenwriter and director Donald Cammell, Brando worked on this story for years. The result is a rollicking, swashbuckling delectable romp of a novel - the last surprise from an ever-surprising legend.