Married couple Fugui and Jiazhen endure tumultuous events in mid-20th century mainland China as their personal fortunes move from wealthy landownership to peasantry.
Acting
Ge You's face holds entire decades of suffering in one glance.
Direction
Zhang Yimou turns propaganda into profoundly intimate human tragedy.
Cinematography
Shadow puppetry as visual poetry—beauty amid brutality.
Director
Zhang Yimou
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Banned in China upon release despite winning Cannes, then quietly rehabilitated as 'officially approved'—the film itself lived like its characters.
CN
