Zhang Yimou

Zhang Yimou’s To Live is a powerful indictment of communist authoritarian rule and blind patriotism. The film places the viewer in the position of an insider as the Communist Revolution alters the political and social landscape of China. By using dramatic irony, Zhang Yimou appraises communist collectivist culture, class structure and power in revolutionary China, and the Cultural Revolution. In addition, by using shadow puppetry as a symbol of indoctrination, Zhang Yimou examines the link between

Zhang Yimou’s thrilling film Hero is both an emotional and exhilarating experience. Hero combines the use of action-packed scenes as well as a beautiful love story. Nameless, Broken Sword and Flying Snow, the main characters, team up to eventually kill the King of Qin who had murdered a number of people with the Qin army including both Flying Snow and Nameless’s father. Although the Qin army is an enemy of Broken Sword and Flying Snow’s people, it is a personal issue to assassinate the king. Throughout

Zhang Yimou directed both the critically acclaimed House of Flying Daggers and the visual masterpiece Curse of the Golden Flower, movies with wuxia influences which are not only popular locally, but overseas as well. Yimou infuses his films with several themes that reinforce the Chinese tradition of upholding social, political, and natural norms. Despite their differences and due to their similarities, House of Flying Daggers and Curse of the Golden Flower emphasize the importance of obeying authority

One of the most significant changes occurred in the wake of the Cultural Revolution. During the revolution itself, China was virtually cut off from the rest of the world in a form of extreme “cultural protectionism” (Hong, 1998, p.2). There was a severe lack of cultural imports during the Cultural Revolution, regardless of whether they were industrial or cultural imports. However, under Deng Xiaoping’s leadership, an era of reform began in China. The nation began to open itself up politically and

28 years have passed since the first collaboration between the awarded Chinese filmmaker, Zhang Yimou, and the renowned actress, Gong Li. That first movie was “Red Sorghum” - not really one of my favorites - and their successful association would become stronger in subsequent essential dramas, all of them from the 90’s, cases of “Ju Dou”, “Raise the Red Lantern”, “The Story of Qiu Ju”, “To Live”, and “Shanghai Triad”. Now, they reunite one more time in “Coming Home”, eight years after “The Curse

the fourth mistress to the Master and has the most trouble assimilating to the domestic life of servitude that is expected of her. The harsh traditions and expectations present in the manor are made clear through Yimou Zhang’s use of framing. The vastness of the manor is assumed however Zhang choses to show limited areas neatly framed in geometric symmetry. Characters in the shot are always framed within a structure of the manor and placed carefully in each frame so not to disturb the symmetry and order

Zhang Yimou presents a breathtaking snapshot of life in China from the 1940s to the 70s through the lens of a single family in “To Live”. China faced many tumultuous twists and turns during this time period as the country transitioned out of the bygone feudal society. Each decade brought in a new era: the civil war of the 40s, the communist regime and the “Great Leap forward” in the 50s, and the cultural revolution of the 60s. Zhang captures the essence of these distinct periods within the progression

Third Cinema in China: Yellow Earth What is identified as 'excess' in Western cinematic experience is, therefore, precisely where we locate Third World cinema. -Teshome Gabriel The possibility of a Third Cinema in China is encouraged with Chen Kaige's 1984 film Yellow Earth. Drawing upon Teshome Gabriel's framework, a working definition of Third Cinema is possible in the case of Chinese cinema. The "fifth generation" of China's film-makers is credited in making films such as Yellow Earth

Set in 1920 republican era China, Raise the red lantern, is a film released in 1991 and directed by Zhang Yimou. Yimou takes the audience behind the walls of a traditional Chinese estate where there is a dominant ideology of patriarchy. It tells a tragic story of how wives which are seen as “mistresses” are forced into a world of schemes for the attention of the powerful Master Chen, the landowner. Through cinematic techniques and reoccurring motifs, the director is able to manifest fatal themes

The Story of Qiu Ju (1992), which was directed by Zhang Yimou, depicts a Chinese woman who questions the notion of filiality and seeks justice for modernity. Filiality is a traditional idea which regards revering their ancestors, older people, and males as the most important concept. Thus, in that idea, giving birth is also important because to maintain the family line, patriline, they need their offspring. In the film, the protagonist, Qiu Ju, travels between the village, the district and the city