Du Yuan Movies
- 2008
A love grows between two people in a place where compassion is in short supply in this historical drama. Born in Japan, Liu Lang (Kiichi Nakai) has spent most of his life in China, and even though it's his home, he doesn't always feel as if he belongs. One day in 1914, Liu gets in a fight with a man who has spoken ill of his wife; Liu loses control of himself and seriously injures the man, leading to his arrest. Liu is sentenced to life in prison for his crime, and behind bars he strikes up a cautious friendship with Liang (Guo Tao), a strong-tempered criminal who is also serving a life sentence. Liu happens to see a woman named Zhou Hong (Miao Pu), is who serving time in the women's wing of the prison, and he senses a kinship with her. Liu learns that Zhou was found guilty of killing her husband, who repeatedly beat her, and while they have little opportunity to speak, through glances and chance meetings the two develop a strong affection for one another. Over the decades, the love between Liu and Zhou helps them survive life in lockup, while the political and social landscape of China changes dramatically outside the walls of the penitentiary. Huangfeng (aka Crossing Over) was the opening-night feature at the 2007 Tokyo Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- 2006
Mongolian Pingpong director Ning Hao weaves this tangled heist tale concerning a priceless piece of jade, and the bumbling thieves willing to do whatever it takes to assume ownership of the gem. The owner of a dilapidated factory has discovered a valuable piece of jade on his property, and now in order to keep a greedy real-estate developer at bay he's looking to find a buyer for the stone. Until that happens, however, the factory owner has determined to put the stone up for display at a run down temple so that potential buyers may admire its beauty. In order to protect the stone, the factory owner assigns hardworking assembly-line worker and former detective Bao (Guo Tao) as his head of security. Now, if Bao can only put his prostate troubles aside long enough to keep three thieves, a skilled burglar hired by the scheming real-estate developer, and the son of the factory owner away from the stone, he may be able to ensure that the factory remains open and he still has a job at the end of the day. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Guo Tao, Liu Huai-Liang, (more)
- 1997
Utilizing a hand-held camera to create a frantic, off-balance effect that is radically different from the techniques with which he made his films best known to Western audiences Raise the Red Lantern and Ju Dou, Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou has made a fast-paced modern comedy that serves as an allegory for the state of China in the late 1990s. The story's protagonist is Xiao Shuai, a bookseller who falls in love with the seductive, free-spirited An Hong. To learn her address, Xiao follows her, but An spurns his advances. He refuses to give up; eventually she caves in and invites him to her home for some quick love. Unfortunately they start, but are interrupted at a crucial moment. Later Xiao is accosted by the burly henchmen of An's new lover, a sleazy nightclub owner. They are beating him like an old rug when Lao Zhang, an old researcher, intervenes. During the scuffle, his prized laptop computer is smashed and later, he demands that Xiao replace it. But Xiao cares nothing for the destroyed laptop; he only wants revenge upon his attackers. Together he and Lao arrange to meet the villains in their club for a showdown. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jiang Wen, Li Baotian, (more)
Country boy Shuisheng (Wang Xiaoxiao) is brought to 1930s Shanghai by his uncle who wants the boy to become a member of the powerful gang ruled by manipulative Tang (Li Baotian). In fact, Shuisheng will serve Tang's capricious mistress Bijou (Gong Li), a nightclub singer whom the boss proclaimed "the Queen of Shanghai." When the boy's uncle and the gang's several other members die during a rival gang's unsuccessful attempt on Tang's life, the latter retreats to a remote small island, taking both Bijou and Shuisheng with him and thinking of revenge. The film's English-language title is a little bit deceiving (the original Chinese title translates to "Row, Row, Row to Grandmother's Bridge," a line in Tang's favorite song performed by Bijou), as this drama centers more on the boy's coming of age and Bijou's disillusionment than on Shanghai gang wars. ~ Yuri German, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gong Li, Li Baotian, (more)
Zhang Yimou, often regarded as China's leading contemporary filmmaker, directed this drama chronicling the ebb and flow of one family's fortunes, set against the backdrop of China's tumultuous history between the 1940s and the 1970s. Fugui (Ge You) is the father of a once-wealthy family whose addiction to gambling and chronic bad luck causes him to lose his home in a game of dice with Long'er (Ni Dabong). Fugui's wife Jiazhen (Gong Li) abandons him, and he finds himself working as a peddler, until the man who now owns his home gives him a pair of shadow puppets. Fugui learns the art of puppetry and travels as a performer; while on the road, he is arrested by Nationalist forces, until he is liberated by advancing Red Army factions, and he comes him home to his wife and children as they adapt to the nation's new leadership. While once a lazy spendthrift, Fugui vows to change his ways, and he struggles to become a better worker and citizen. But Fugui and his family soon realize that there is adversity waiting for them around every corner, and the onset of the Cultural Revolution makes it clear that China's new regime can be as corrupt and callous as the old order. While a Grand Prize winner at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival and recipient of the Best Foreign Language Film award at the 1995 BAFTA Awards, Huozhe did not fare well in its homeland. Chinese censors objected to the film's commentary about political abuses in China's past, as well as Zhang Yimou's attempts to present the film at several international festivals. As punishment, he was forced to write a formal apology and was not allowed to make another film for two years. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
The phenomenal success and international acclaim of Raise the Red Lantern, cemented Zhang Yimou's status as a leading figure in world cinema and reaffirmed the vibrancy of Chinese cinema. Though the film was the topic of great political controversy in China upon its release, it received armfuls of awards from Belgium, Italy, the United Kingdom and a nomination for an Academy Award.
This sumptuously photographed drama, set in Northern China in the 1920s and based on the novel Wives and Concubines by Su Tong, stars Gong Li as Songlian, the fourth wife of an elderly landlord. Songlian is a college student who has been married off by her stepmother, so it is with tremendous frustration that this woman, who had hopes of using her education to broaden her horizons, now finds herself reduced to a small enclosure at the beck and call of her husband. Despite being given a maid (Kong Lin) and luxurious surroundings, she feels trapped inside the cheerless walls. Upon her arrival, Songlian realizes that she must keep one step ahead of her rivals, the three other wives. She also learns of her husband's tradition of lighting a lantern outside of the house of the wife with whom he intends to spend the night. During the first night together with her husband, she finds he is called away to tend to his spoiled third wife (He Caifei). Songlian then becomes acquainted with his other wives -- his first wife (Jin Shuyuan), an elderly woman who ignores Songlian; the third wife, an ex-opera singer; and the second wife (Cao Cuifeng), who offers Songlian friendship and helpful advice. But it turns out that the second wife's motives are not exactly innocent--she is conspiring with Songlian's maid to undermine both the third wife and Songlian. Raise the Red Lantern is a moving exploration of power in a suffocating world of ossified tradition and naked ambition-a masterpiece of 1990s world cinema. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
This sumptuously photographed drama, set in Northern China in the 1920s and based on the novel Wives and Concubines by Su Tong, stars Gong Li as Songlian, the fourth wife of an elderly landlord. Songlian is a college student who has been married off by her stepmother, so it is with tremendous frustration that this woman, who had hopes of using her education to broaden her horizons, now finds herself reduced to a small enclosure at the beck and call of her husband. Despite being given a maid (Kong Lin) and luxurious surroundings, she feels trapped inside the cheerless walls. Upon her arrival, Songlian realizes that she must keep one step ahead of her rivals, the three other wives. She also learns of her husband's tradition of lighting a lantern outside of the house of the wife with whom he intends to spend the night. During the first night together with her husband, she finds he is called away to tend to his spoiled third wife (He Caifei). Songlian then becomes acquainted with his other wives -- his first wife (Jin Shuyuan), an elderly woman who ignores Songlian; the third wife, an ex-opera singer; and the second wife (Cao Cuifeng), who offers Songlian friendship and helpful advice. But it turns out that the second wife's motives are not exactly innocent--she is conspiring with Songlian's maid to undermine both the third wife and Songlian. Raise the Red Lantern is a moving exploration of power in a suffocating world of ossified tradition and naked ambition-a masterpiece of 1990s world cinema. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
A dark, sensual, and visually sumptuous drama, Ju Dou centers on the title character, the third wife of a wealthy silk dyer in 1920s China. Forced into marriage by poverty, Ju Dou is repeatedly mistreated and cruelly disciplined by her husband, Jin-shan, for failing to bear him an heir. Her suffering attracts the sympathy of Jin-shan's younger, kinder nephew, Tian-qing, and the two begin a secret affair that could have tragic consequences. Spanning the course of many years, the film's narrative takes several surprising turns, defying expectations and complicating audience sympathies. None of the film's characters is wholly heroic or evil, allowing all three central performers -- Li Bao-tian as Tian-qing, Li Wei as Jin-shan, and the luminous Gong Li as Ju Dou -- to fashion memorable, complex portrayals. Director Zhang Yimou, a former cinematographer, uses gorgeously saturated images that emphasize his story's elemental nature, which often recalls classical tragedy. Met with controversy in China due to supposed political overtones that worried government officials, Ju Dou received fairer treatment overseas, winning an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film and numerous festival prizes. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gong Li, Li Baotian, (more)
- 1987
- NR
Red Sorghum was the first directorial effort of controversial Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou. The director's favorite leading lady Gong Li plays a young woman of the 1920s whose family sells her into marriage with a wealthy winemaker. At first a loveless union, the relationship blossoms into one of strong friendship and mutual respect. During World War II, Gong Li fights side by side with her husband against the invading Japanese. A sweeping yet intensely personal historical epic, Red Sorghum won the 1988 Golden Bear award at the Berlin Film Festival. Despite its patriotic overtones, the film was heavily censored (when not banned altogether) in certain provinces of Communist China. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1986
Originally titled Ye Shan, In the Wild Mountains was filmed on location in the Northern China province of Shaanxi, where the story takes place. The central characters are a pair of brothers, Hehe and Huihui. Huihui is satisfied with his austere existence as a farmer, but Hehe is eager to improve his lifestyle. When Hehe heads to the City to make his fortune, he leaves his young wife Quirong in Huihui's care. Huihui's own wife Guijan, fascinated by the returning Hehe's tales of the wonders of the City, leaves Huihui to join Hehe. The two erstwhile lovers are later ostracized by Huihui and by the rest of the village. Out of this family crisis grows the film's satisfying denouement: Hehe is paired with Guijan, while Huihui finds the mate of his dreams in Quirong. The most winning aspect of In the Wild Mountains is its equanimity; we are invited to empathize with everyone in the story, rather than pass judgment over their occasional human frailties. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
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