Trailers
Description
An old leper who owned a remote sorghum winery dies. Jiu'er, the wife bought by the leper, and her lover, identified only as "my Grandpa" by the narrator, take over the winery and set up an idealized quasi-matriarchal community headed by Jiu'er. When the Japanese invaders subject the area to their rule and cut down the sorghum to make way for a road, the community rises up and resists as the sorghum grows anew.
Starring
Awards
Key opinion
Zhang Yimou's directorial debut is widely regarded as a watershed moment for Chinese cinema, celebrated for its bold visual style and its role in bringing the Fifth Generation movement to international prominence. While some critics argue that the characterizations lack modern depth compared to the director's later epics, most view it as a landmark masterpiece of symbolic storytelling and sensory intensity.
| Cinematography | The vivid, red-dominant color palette masterfully links the themes of wine, blood, and visceral passion. | |
| Culture | The film serves as a foundational milestone that successfully introduced Chinese cinema to a global audience and catalyzed a new era of artistic resurgence. | |
| Acting | Gong Li’s debut performance provides a powerful, symbolic anchor for the narrative, though some find the character development archetypal rather than deeply nuanced. | |
| Screenplay | The narrative's shift from a poetic, pastoral melodrama to the harsh, violent reality of the Japanese occupation creates a jarring but intentional tonal contrast. | |
| Theme | While proponents praise the film's folk-inspired, painterly aesthetic, detractors argue that its focus on symbolism and atmosphere comes at the expense of individual character depth. |