Liu Heng Movies
A veteran of China's Civil War rails against modern bureaucracy in hopes of finally receiving recognition for his bravery and to honor the memory of his fallen comrades in director Feng Xiaogang's big-budget war drama. The year was 1948, and the fighting between the Nationalist KMT and the Communist PLA is raging. In a small, northeast China town, Captain Gu Zidi (Zhang Hanyu) leads the Ninth Company in a fierce skirmish against the a rapidly weakening KMT unit. His blood boiling over the death of a political officer in battle, Captain Gu vengefully kills a KMT soldier despite the fact that the leader and his unit have just surrendered. Imprisoned for a few short days as a sort-of token gesture, Captain Gu makes the acquaintance of imprisoned political officer Wang Juncun (Yuan Wenkang, who has just been accused of cowardice and will likely receive the death penalty. Later, when Captain Gu is ordered to take the Ninth out on a dangerous mission, he requests that Wang join the brigade in battle. Unfortunately for the majority of the squad, the KMT forces are much more substantial this time around, and though a few men claim to have heard the signal for retreat, Captain Gu commands them to stand their ground: In the aftermath of the slaughter, Captain Gu is the last man standing. Still, the valiant soldier stages a remarkable recovery, and goes on to save the life of North Korean Er Dou (Deng Chao) during a battle against the Americans and South Koreans. A few years later, Captain Gu enlists the aid of Er Dou and Wang's widow in regaining his honor, and ensuring that his fellow soldiers didn't die in vain. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Zhang Hanyu, Yuan Wenkang, (more)
- 2006
An unrequited love affair is played out against tumultuous events in Asian history in this epic-scale historical drama. Qiushui (Chen Kun) is a teacher living and working in Taipei in the mid-1940. Qiushui meets Biyun (Vivian Hsu), a beautiful young woman from a wealthy family, when he's hired to tutor her. Qiushui soon falls head over heels for Biyun, and she clearly has feelings for him; however, Qiushui's close friend Zilu (Steven Cheung) is also infatuated with Biyun, and her father Wang Tingwu (Chin Han) isn't sure if Qiushui is a good match for his daughter. Despite it all, Qiushui and Biyun begin making plans to marry, but their hopes are dashed when the Taiwanese government begins a pogrom against those on the political left, and Qiushui's activism forces him to leave the country. Several years later, Qiushui is a medic tending to wounded soldiers in Korea, and an attractive woman named Jindi (Li Bingbing) is assigned to assist him. Jindi is quite taken with Qiushui, but he hasn't been able to forget Biyun, and Jindi finds using her feminine charm to make him forget his old love is an uphill struggle. Later, in the present day, the events of sixty years earlier take on a new importance as aging artist (Chang Gua Ahleh) and his niece Isabella Leong set out to find out what became of his brother Xue. The first co-production between producers from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, Yun Shui Yao (English title: The Knot) was released simultaneously in all three nations, and became a major box-office success in China. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chen Kun, Vivian Hsu, (more)
- 2000
This family drama from China is based on a popular novel by Liu Heng, which was also the basis of a successful television series. The story follows the adventures of Zhang Damin (Feng Gong), the oldest brother in a large family who often finds himself negotiating the traffic of siblings moving in and out of the cramped family home, as marriages and divorces take them away and bring them back again. Meishi Touzhe Le received belated international recognition when it was given an enthusiastic reception at Korea's Pusan Film Festival in 2000. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 2000
Gong Li stars in this low-key drama about a single mother who will do anything to provide for her son. Sun Liying (Li) struggles to care for her hearing-impaired child Zheng Da (Gao Xin) after her taxi driver husband divorces her. After Zheng Da gets his hearing aid smashed in a fight with classmates, Sun Liying sets out to raise 5,000 yuan (a small fortune) to buy him a replacement. A friend helps her set up an unauthorized bookstall, which soon gets raided by the police. Later she splits her time delivering newspapers and cleaning house for a rich businessman. This film was screened at the 2000 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- 1994
The true story of a major turning point in ancient Chinese history is presented in this epic drama covering the destruction of the Qin Dynasty in the late third century B.C. Most specifically the film focuses upon the battle between the Qin and Chu forces in the first half, and in the second it focuses upon the personal competition between the Chu leaders as they fight for control of the territory. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1994
In this sensitive Asian melodrama chronicles the two major loves in the life of a man who cannot change. The story is divided into two parts; each part focused upon one woman. The story begins in Shanghai during the early 1930's and follows the loves of Chen-pao. His early love life abroad is chronicled in the opening scenes. The real story begins as Chen-pao returns to Shanghai and stay at their friend Wang's apartment. Chen-pao meets Wang's moody, selfish wife Chiao-jui. The two begin a passionate affair. Chen-pao nicknames her "Red Rose." Chen-pao, who always likes to be in control, is tormented by his love affair. Red Rose rejoices in it. Soon she asks Wang for a divorce. This sends Chen-pao over the edge. He vows to start anew. Time passes. In the second half, Chen-pao is a businessman who woos and marries Yen-li, his "White Rose." She is from a peasant background and very young. She endeavors to be the perfect wife. More time passes. It is 1943 and Chen-pao is back to his old ways. This drives Yen-li to a breakdown. After she recovers, she too has an affair. Chen-pao encounters Red Rose on the street as the movie ends. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1992
The news that his first wife was pregnant with a child when they separated some ten years ago comes to official photographer Cao Depai (Li Xuejian) like a thunderbolt out of the blue. Now she is dead, and the son that he never knew was found wandering the streets. He is afraid to tell his new wife about this extra mouth to feed, and at first he attempts to house the lad at his darkroom. However, the boy sneaks visits to his father's current home frequently in order to play with his step-siblings, and eventually they are discovered together. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Li Xuejian, Song Dandan, (more)
- 1990
Li Huiqian (Jiang Wen) has been out of circulation for quite a few years, because he has been a prisoner. On his release, he returns to the family home that he grew up in. Only a couple of elderly aunts remain there. He has difficulty dealing with the new money-and-profit orientation of everyone around him, but is able to find a job as a clothes-seller. He gradually wises up to the ways of the people around them, but not quickly enough to keep him from doing some really stupid things. In particular, he falls in love with a much more sophisticated singer whose career is on the rise, and nothing seems to go right for him in that relationship. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jiang Wen
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, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gong Li, Li Baotian, (more)
With The Story of Qiu Ju, internationally acclaimed Chinese director Zhang Yimou shifts his attention from powerful historical dramas (Raise the Red Lantern and Ju Dou) to contemporary life. Gong Li plays the titular heroine, an average woman in a rural village whose life is unexceptional until her husband is physically attacked by the village elder. When the elder refuses to apologize, Qiu Ju decides to seek legal action with the help of a local magistrate. Soon, her quest for simple justice balloons into a series of frustrating battles with a complicated and unproductive bureaucracy. In contrast to the rich, painterly look of his previous films, Zhang adopts an unadorned, realistic style that allows the film's increasingly absurd situations to speak for themselves. Indeed, while the look at government gone wrong has serious underpinnings, the overall tone remains one of understated satire. As might be expected, The Story of Qiu Ju was received with greater appreciation by international critics than in its home country. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
