However, things get out of hand... ‘Cliff Walkers’ Review: Zhang Yimou Comes Back from the Cold with a Gorgeous but Convoluted Spy Thriller, Zhang Yimou on the Persistence That Got ‘Cliff Walkers’ Made Despite Covid and Melting Snow, Why Gong Li Traded in Her Glamour for the Chinese Sports Movie ‘Leap’, The Best 1990s International Feature Film, Movies for Women's History Month: An International Collection, IMDb Poll Board Favorite Foreign Language Films. View production, box office, & company info. The teacher leaves one stick of chalk for each ... See full summary ». A woman married to the brutal and infertile owner of a dye mill in rural China conceives a boy with her husband's nephew but is forced to raise her son as her husband's heir without revealing his parentage in this circular tragedy. Yimou, Zhang. Raise the Red Lantern also displays Zhang’s signature style: balanced framing, bold use of colour and the penetrating close-up. You play as The Musher as she sets out to build her dog sledding team and her new life. Raise the Red Lantern (1991) Plot. Fabulous purchase. The competition between the wives is tough, as their master's attention carries power, status and privilege. Was this review helpful to you? Wasted $$ and CAN'T GET A REFUND, so beware! As she is frustrated by each level of ... See full summary ». Lu and Feng are a devoted couple forced to separate when Lu is arrested and sent to a labor camp as a political prisoner during the Cultural Revolution. No film had a more startling effect in the west than Yimou's Raise the Red Lantern, which rushed Gong Li, a star after Red Sorghum and Ju Dou, into the superstar league During China's Tang dynasty the emperor has taken the princess of a neighboring province as wife. A classic. (1991). One of my favorite movies, let alone foreign films. EMBED. He finally returns home only to find that his beloved wife no longer recognizes him. In "Raise the Red Lantern," the Chinese director selects from a stirring palette of glowing reds, subtle yellows and twilight grays. She says she agrees to get married but she has no say in the matter. Raise the Red Lantern is one of the more sublimely beautiful and openly disturbing films of the 1990s. Additionally, we are not allowed to see the Master's face clearly, which is another symbolic way that Zhang uses to reference that the Chinese cannot "see" who is guiding their every move (aka the Government) but their lives are affected by this unseen, patriarchal figure. Raise the Red Lantern removes the erotic and has a more devastating effect: Songlian’s self-destruction is assured from the start as she confronts the effects of unbending authority and we, like her unseen stepmother, are forced to watch how it abuses her. A headstrong woman, her relationship with the lord's household, especially the other three mistresses, form the basis of the story. Raise the Red Lantern Raise the Red Lantern, one of his earliest films, remains his greatest accomplishment. I loved this movie. A pregnant peasant woman seeks redress from the Chinese bureaucracy after the village chief kicks her husband in the groin in this comedy of justice. The only English subtitles were on the credits. Another No_Favorite. MGM /Fox's DVD of Raise the Red Lantern looks fine, with an unblemished, richly colored image. She says she will marry a rich man like her mother wants and become his concubine. “Foucault’s Panopticon in Zhang Yimou’s Raise the Red Lantern, and Nawal El Saadawi’s Woman at Point Zero.” 1993. Raise the Red Lantern Zhang Yimou’s Raise the Red Lantern tells the story of Songlian, a college educated girl married to a noble and arrives at hisfeudal manor house. I can't think of anything that warrants improvement. With precious few options available to her, she's… I would have enjoyed it more had I understood Chinese. It has sub-titles, so be prepared. The opening scene sets up the entire movie. So opens "Raise the Red Lantern," a Chinese film of voluptuous physical beauty and angry passions.It is one of this year's Academy Award nominees in the foreign film category, directed by Zhang Yimou, whose "Ju Dou" was nominated last year.This film, based on the novel Wives and Concubines by Su Tong, can no doubt be interpreted in a number of ways - as a cry against the subjection of women … Directed by Yimou Zhang. The film is exquisitely shot, well acted, intelligent, and features unparalleled expertise in framing sequences (Zhang uses the ancient brick walls to effectively imprison his protagonist often placing her in the center of the frame). The opening scene sets up the entire movie. Or one can see the allegory that this is a political film by Zhang Yimou, starring his long-time partner Gong Li, referencing a Confucian/Feminist Matrix as well as the Tiananmen Square incident in 1989. A young woman becomes the fourth wife of a wealthy lord, and must learn to live with the strict rules and tensions within the household. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. The competition between the wives is tough, as their master's attention carries power, status and privilege. Lotus is the youngest in the family and is loved the most by the master. It is poignant; it is revelatory; and it is a bold exposé. The enhanced transfer is listed as 2:35 on the box, but it looks more like 1:85 to these eyes. Raise the red lantern Item Preview > remove-circle Share or Embed This Item. She has borne him two sons and raised his eldest. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 11, 2014, Fabulous film. Although the DVD says Thai sub titles, this movie does have English subtitles. Such a beautiful story, glad it's finally available in UK with English Subtitles. Splendid, gorgeous, full of intrigue and surprises. Each night Chen must decide with which wife to spend the night and a red lantern is lit in front of the house of his choice. There’s a close up of Songlian (Gong Li) who is talking to her mother. It is an adaptation by Ni Zhen of the 1990 novel Wives and Concubines by Su Tong. A provincial boy related to a Shanghai crime family is recruited by his uncle into cosmopolitan Shanghai in the 1930s to be a servant to a ganglord's mistress. In both films, the protagonist enters a closed system from which there is no escape, and life is ruled by long-established "customs." Zhang Yimou’s greatest film, Raise the Red Lantern perplexingly never supplies a close-up of the Master of the house, instead only giving stark focus to the four concubines of the opulent 1920’s compound including new Fourth Mistress Songlian (Gong Li). Cannot fault this near perfect film. This must be one of the most refined and elegant Chinese films ever made. It is an excellent movie, not what you want to happen but very realistic as to what did happen to women in China during that time period. Raise The Red Lantern was the fourth film by director Zhang Yimou. Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. I was panicky when I thought there were no English subtitles but I am very happy with the seller for sending me this movie, Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 26, 2015. Somber, tantalizing, and contemplative, Raise the Red Lantern is a thought-provoking and powerful portrait of a young woman who, after marrying a significantly older and wealthier man, finds herself confronted with the surreptitious conspiracies pervading the relationships between his three other wives—and soon, her relationships, too. The emotional deprivation becomes too much for one of the wives though with disastrous consequences. There’s a close up of Songlian (Gong Li) who is talking to her mother. Web. The film can be perceived as a parable about the decisions women make, particularly in their desperate need to protect their financial security while losing the security of their true selves. The women in this cloistered world have only their companionship with each other to entertain them but they have beautiful clothes and small luxuries, like foot massage, when they are pregnant. I have been looking for a good print of this movie with English subtitles for 20 years, so this is a delight. Use the HTML below. "Raise the Red Lantern" is set at a Chinese baronial estate, the time, the 1920s. A Question to Answer. In his film Raise the Red Lantern, Zhang Yimou explores various issues which have existed in the Chinese society.The film dwells upon social and political peculiarities of the Chinese society of the 1920s. Add the first question. But "Raise the Red Lantern" is unique, essentially in its detailed look at the hazards of polygamy and the tragedies that ensue when squabbling between wives accelerates to unexpected proportions. / Da hong deng long gao gao gua / Street Date July 24, 2007 / 19.98 Starring Li Gong, Caifei He, Cuifen Cao, Jingwu Ma, Qi Zhao, Lin Kong, Jin Shuyuan, Zhihgang Cui, Chu Xiao Cinematography Lun Yang, Fei Zhao Art Direction Juiping Cao Film Editor Yuan Du Original Music Naoki Tachikawa, Jiping Zhao Raise The Red Lantern was the fourth film by director Zhang Yimou. This wonderful film set in pre-Communist China is a great work with regards to cinematography, use of color, and can be enjoyed as simply a film from a woman's perspective living in a patriarchal, feudal China. Raise the Red Lantern: Lotus is a nineteen year old girl who marries the 50 yr old Chen Zuqian as his concubines because her father kills himself and she has no other choice. Shen, Sigmund. It will keep you thinking a little while after watching.. Waste of time. China in the 1920's. Now his control over his dominion is complete, including the royal family itself. Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2021. But it's telling is as important as the story itself. Advanced embedding details, examples, and help! Watch on YouTube. But culturally this movie is informative, cinematically it is beautiful, and the story about women in a strange situation trying to live their lives and make it through said strange situation was appealing. A young woman becomes the fourth wife of a wealthy lord, and must learn to … And each wife schemes and plots to make sure it's hers. There isn't an arbitrary hue in the movie. Raise the Red Lantern "Raise the Red Lantern" took me three nights to watch, not because it was a dull story, but because my ocular senses had to recover from the glory of each of the scenes. Reviewed in the United States on December 16, 2018. flag. He would serve as the assistant director in Zhang's Raise the Red Lantern (1992) and Tian's The Blue Kite, as well as a screenwriter for Chen Kaige's King of the Children (1987), before his debut film, Red Beads, was released in 1993 to strong reviews in the west. I had previously seen Raise the Red Lantern on one of the Pay-Premium channels and wanted to see again. In a remote mountain village, the teacher must leave for a month, and the mayor can find only a 13-year old girl, Wei Minzhi, to substitute. Raise the Red Lantern is a 1991 film directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Gong Li. The Red Lantern is a resource management narrative game where you and your team of five sled dogs must survive the wilderness and find your way home. A beautiful young woman is pushed into becoming a junior wife of a rich man by her widowed stepmother who can no longer support her and finds that sharing not just a detatched husband but her whole life with her older "sisters" is a microcosm of suspicion and envy. With Gong Li, Jingwu Ma, Saifei He, Cuifen Cao. Yimou’s Raise The Red Lantern Jacqueline Loeb Rutgers University Raise The Red Lantern (Dà Hóng Dēnglóng Gāogāo Guà, Zhang Yimou, 1991), set in 1920s China, tells the story of Songlian, an educated nineteen year old woman who after the death of her father has little choice but to marry a wealthy man from a distant province. Raise the Red Lantern is by far the most haunting tragedy in eastern cinema. Raise the Red Lantern is an award-winning 1991 film directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Gong Li, in the role that brought her to international attention.It is set in the early 1920s, well before the rise of communism.. After the death of her father, … It also analyzes reviews to verify trustworthiness. The acting was perfect and actually, you could tell what was going on in the film because of it. Our editors have rounded up their most anticipated horror movies of the year. In "Raise the Red Lantern", the red lantern, an invented icon here (and one accused of being a fake cultural signifier used merely for sensational purposes), is the film's central symbol and most important metaphor. When a leprous winery owner in 1930s China dies a few days after his arranged marriage, his young widow is forced to run the winery to make a living while contending with bandits, her drunkard lover, and the invading Japanese army. The Chinese film "Raise the Red Lantern" (1991), like the Japanese film "Woman in the Dunes" (1960), is about sexual enslavement. A romantic police captain breaks a beautiful member of a rebel group out of prison to help her rejoin her fellows, but things are not what they seem. A defense officer, Nameless, was summoned by the King of Qin regarding his success of terminating three warriors. A young woman becomes the fourth wife of a wealthy lord, and must learn to live with the strict rules and tensions within the household. I've seen this film on several occasions and I never tire of it. Raise the Red Lantern chooses instead to be faithful to historical realities. Examined here is the presentation of spectacle and the underlying questions raised by Zhang’s methods of ‘looking’, aspects that give the film a richness and complexity to match its content. Each night Chen must decide with which wife to spend the night and a red lantern is lit in front of the house of his choice. It also focuses on gender roles and the roles played by women. It is absolutely engaging and so well done, you quickly forget that you are reading subtitles. Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2020. With Zhang's use of red (one of his favorite vehicles in his film-making during the 1990s), our eyes are led to different paths. This Thai copy does not say it has English subtitles, but it does. While red is used to symbolize passion and revolutionary spirit in Red Sorghum, it takes on a much more sinister meaning in Raise the Red Lantern. But, as the family-servant dynamics are placed on display, the viewer begins to feel it could be a thousand years earlier. Nineteen-year-old Songlian (Gong Li) is facing a personal crossroads at the start of Zhang Yimou's 1991 film Raise the Red Lantern. Raise the Red Lantern MGM / Fox 1991 / Color / 1:78 anamorphic widescreen / 125 min. Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2019. Raise The Red Lantern was the fourth film by director Zhang Yimou. After her father's death, nineteen year old Songlian is forced to marry Chen Zuoqian, the lord of a powerful family. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Mattias Pettersson . The film was later adapted into an acclaimed ballet of the same title by the National Ballet of China, also directed by Zhang. After Fugui and Jiazhen lose their personal fortunes, they raise a family and survive difficult cultural changes during 1940s to 1970s China. Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Thank goodness, there are plots posted on the web that tell the story. Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2019. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 10, 2013. Top subscription boxes – right to your door, © 1996-2021, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. The colour red is a symbol of sexuality and eroticism, but no longer of passion. He Jianjun-Wikipedia. The story of the treachery amongst the wives rivals any soap opera! Slow-paced, it ingratiates itself with you, drawing you in deeper and deeper. The story is shown through the eyes of a young college-dropout played by Gong Li. “Raise the Red Lantern… Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 23, 2007. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 10, 2014. "Raise the Red Lantern," a beautifully crafted and richly detailed feat of consciousness-raising and a serious drama with the verve of a good soap opera, is … She says she will marry a rich man like her mother wants and become his concubine. The story has 19-year-old Songlian leaving college after six months to become the fourth wife of an older, wealthy man. After her father's death, nineteen year old Songlian is forced to marry Chen Zuoqian, the lord of a powerful family. A university student in 1920s China, she's been forced to leave school as a result of her father's recent death and her family's subsequent financial difficulties. Very pleased with this movie. Fifty year old Chen has already three wives, each of them living in separate houses within the great castle. A young woman becomes the fourth wife of a wealthy lord, and must learn to live with the strict rules and tensions within the household. Title: China in the 1920's. Showing all 3 items Jump to: Summaries (2) Synopsis (1) Summaries. It was a drama, so it moved slightly slow at times. Get a sneak peek of the new version of this page. The predominant use of the color Red in his highly stylized films: Red Sorghum (1988), Ju Dou and Raise the Red Lantern (1991) are evidence of his trademark visual style thus leading scholars to critically analyze the symbolic representation of the color. Written by Beautiful, sublime, suspense, intensity. share. She “insists on carrying her own suitcase, which is virtually the last act of independence she will be permitted during the course of her stay.” (Maslin, 1992). EMBED (for wordpress.com hosted blogs and archive.org item tags) Want more? The family is held "captive" within the grey walls, which was typical in feudal China, with only the Master being allowed to come/go as he pleases. 24 wins & 14 nominations. She says she agrees to get married but she has no say in the matter. I'm sure the film is amazing. This is a beautiful, well-acted, well-directed movie. This FAQ is empty. Family misfortune has forced her into concubinage as the "fourth mistress" of the Chinese lord. Two boys meet at an opera training school in Peking in 1924. Prompted by the death of his father and the grief of his mother, a man recalls the story of how they met in flashback. What may have been lacking in story depth, made up for in visuals as this story of a concubine in China desperately adjusts to a life she was not eager to step into. The story of a young girl who is sent by her family to be one of many wives to a wealthy man. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. I checked all the boxes but still only Chinese. Their resulting friendship will span nearly 70 years and will endure some of the most troublesome times in China's history. 51 of 67 people found this review helpful. 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