Raise the Red Lantern (B+ or 3/4 stars)
Director Zhang Yimou's emotionally turbulent 1991 drama, 'Raise the Red Lantern', is a visually stunning, superbly acted film set in 1920s China among the concubines of a rich clan leader, Chen Zuoqian, who has just taken his 4th(!) wife, the educated 19 yr. old Songlian (Gong Li), forced into this marriage after the devastating death of her father. The difference btwn. Songlian & the other 3 spouses {also referred to as mistresses}, is that she is educated, & has been married - by her mother - against her will. So now, her existence is reduced to a beautiful, if prison-like compound, & the only people she sees are her wealthy husband, Master Chen (Ma Jingwu), his family, & their servants. She is given a maid (Kong Lin) with whom she doesn't see eye to eye with, and finds her new compound home to be an austere & somber place, despite all the vivid colors that beautify the interior walls.
It is Master Chen's tradition to light beautiful lanterns outside the house of the wife he intends to spend the night with. Since Songlian is new, it is anticipated that he will spend most of his time with her. Within mere days of her arrival, Songlian's relationships with her 'sisters' are settled. The 1st wife (Jin Shuyuan), who is older with a grown son, does her very best to ignore Songlian; she, at most, tolerates her. The 3rd concubine, Meishan (He Caifei), a beautiful former opera singer, is fiercely jealous of Songlian, fretting that Master Chen will find his new, highly educated bride more beguiling.
It is only the 2nd concubine, Zhuoyan (Cao Cuifen), who offers any kindness or friendship to her; or so it seems. On her 1st night with Master Chen, he is called away to comfort his overly coddled 3rd wife, who complains of illness. From that point on, Songlian realizes that she will have to turn to become quite the canny concubine to preserve her husband's attentiveness; to keep her status higher than the rest. And so, to keep the red lanterns hanging outside her window, Songlian pretends to be pregnant. Deceits, betrayals, jealous rages & the revelation of each other's deepest, darkest secrets ultimately leads to tragedy on several fronts.
'Raise the Red Lantern' is one of the most sublimely beautiful, yet also thoroughly disturbing films I've seen from the early 1990s. It is also immaculate work from director Zhang Yimou and his muse, Gong Li {they also worked together on Ju Dou & To Live}. This film casts a spell. For me, I almost forgot that I was even watching a movie; feeling like I was a fly on the wall of this sprawling compound. And even if I was not thrilled with some late developments in the story ... I was haunted by the film for days after I saw it. I kept coming back to various images & moments that shook me.
The story is deceptively simple, but the themes & emotions are complex. Songlian acts as the 'individual' in Chinese society of the 1920s, while Master Chen acts as 'the government' -- the customs of his house are just like the laws of the nation. It is an archaic system that rewards those who act by the rules, & destroys those who breach them. 'RtRL' shows how damaging the closed-off, dictatorial, patriarchal society China had back then. The film also shows how women had to use wits & guile to win-over their men if sex appeal & looks floundered. What's funny is: the women manipulate each other, but also find ways to manipulate their master.
Gong Li is luminous & sympathetic as Songlian, who acts as our conduit through the mercurial, ritual-heavy world of the compound. Songlian struggles to be as cold & calculating as her 'sisters'. But just when she thinks she's made headway, tragedy shatters her composure, and ultimately, her sanity. 'Raise the Red Lantern' is sumptuously photographed by Fei Zhao; capturing the boldness of the grounds & the vividness of the many colors which director Yimou employs through the sets & costumes. So yeah, the fate of several of the characters is absolutely wrenching. It's a sad epilogue to a film that, may hit viewers differently depending on if they give themselves in to the emotional power of the story, or are able to watch it dispassionately.
It is Master Chen's tradition to light beautiful lanterns outside the house of the wife he intends to spend the night with. Since Songlian is new, it is anticipated that he will spend most of his time with her. Within mere days of her arrival, Songlian's relationships with her 'sisters' are settled. The 1st wife (Jin Shuyuan), who is older with a grown son, does her very best to ignore Songlian; she, at most, tolerates her. The 3rd concubine, Meishan (He Caifei), a beautiful former opera singer, is fiercely jealous of Songlian, fretting that Master Chen will find his new, highly educated bride more beguiling.
It is only the 2nd concubine, Zhuoyan (Cao Cuifen), who offers any kindness or friendship to her; or so it seems. On her 1st night with Master Chen, he is called away to comfort his overly coddled 3rd wife, who complains of illness. From that point on, Songlian realizes that she will have to turn to become quite the canny concubine to preserve her husband's attentiveness; to keep her status higher than the rest. And so, to keep the red lanterns hanging outside her window, Songlian pretends to be pregnant. Deceits, betrayals, jealous rages & the revelation of each other's deepest, darkest secrets ultimately leads to tragedy on several fronts.
'Raise the Red Lantern' is one of the most sublimely beautiful, yet also thoroughly disturbing films I've seen from the early 1990s. It is also immaculate work from director Zhang Yimou and his muse, Gong Li {they also worked together on Ju Dou & To Live}. This film casts a spell. For me, I almost forgot that I was even watching a movie; feeling like I was a fly on the wall of this sprawling compound. And even if I was not thrilled with some late developments in the story ... I was haunted by the film for days after I saw it. I kept coming back to various images & moments that shook me.
The story is deceptively simple, but the themes & emotions are complex. Songlian acts as the 'individual' in Chinese society of the 1920s, while Master Chen acts as 'the government' -- the customs of his house are just like the laws of the nation. It is an archaic system that rewards those who act by the rules, & destroys those who breach them. 'RtRL' shows how damaging the closed-off, dictatorial, patriarchal society China had back then. The film also shows how women had to use wits & guile to win-over their men if sex appeal & looks floundered. What's funny is: the women manipulate each other, but also find ways to manipulate their master.
Gong Li is luminous & sympathetic as Songlian, who acts as our conduit through the mercurial, ritual-heavy world of the compound. Songlian struggles to be as cold & calculating as her 'sisters'. But just when she thinks she's made headway, tragedy shatters her composure, and ultimately, her sanity. 'Raise the Red Lantern' is sumptuously photographed by Fei Zhao; capturing the boldness of the grounds & the vividness of the many colors which director Yimou employs through the sets & costumes. So yeah, the fate of several of the characters is absolutely wrenching. It's a sad epilogue to a film that, may hit viewers differently depending on if they give themselves in to the emotional power of the story, or are able to watch it dispassionately.