Allan Hu's review on Yellow Earth

Chen Kaige’s, as a new fifth generation of Chinese film and cinema, and with his new notions of producing a new movement within the Chinese film industry, produced the film Yellow Earth. Produced alongside with Zhang Yimou, a cinematographer, they set a new bar for how films were made in China. In addition, at Hong Kong’s film award ceremony, out of 100 top Chinese films, it placed fourth.

To first off gain a little background, the movie is set in the 1939, during the war between Chinese Communist Party ,along side with Kuomintan , were in conjunction to protect China from invading Japanese threat. However, to keep the morale high for the soldiers that fighting at the moment, the army sends Brother Gu to the south, so there ,he can obtain folk songs to boost the morale of army soldiers. However, during the visit to the countryside of the south, when he is rooming with a family, he falls in love with one of the members, Cui Quio. It’s in these intimate moments, bonding with Brother Gu, is where she obtains the notion to ditch the old ways of the south and there on, attempt to join the army. Basically, Brother Gu would like to obtain Folk songs, but to his dismay, first off, all the songs that are depicted among the south community are immensely sad or happy. In addition, Brother Gu is unable to even get a hold of these songs. However, I definitely think there was definitely more meaning to just obtaining folk songs in the present motif of the movie. The songs serve as the many moods for Cui Quio. In the extreme sad side of the songs, it can depict her mood when she learns of the moment where she learned that she would have an arranged marriage, and not ever have the ability to “fall” in love. On the other hand, the songs that depict happiness are the moments where she falls in love with Brother Gu. In addition, these themes could be applicable to others in the village, where there is mostly deprivation among the community.
Since Chen did grow up amidst the Cultural Revolution, he portrays through his art work how feeble attempts at communism are being administered through the south. With Brother Gu’s visit, he told stories of how women have short hair, and how they could choose who they would want to marry and such. Other things that were compounded into these ideas were the notions of women joining the army , which elicited Cui Quio to crave the possibility of moving outside of her previous surrounding of the would. Because of these events , I feel that Brother Gu could be a representation of communism because he attempts to transcend into the south spreading his word of communism, and depicting what a better life outside of the south is to all its constituents. Therefore, individuals might get the notion of hollowing out into the “regular” city and abandon their old lives in the south.


Movies like these within the 5th generation of filmmakers seem to give the audience the ambiance of “there’s more stuff out there”, other than your rice picking farm and little village. I might be wrong, but I feel that possibly Chen wants the youth, since movies are usually observed by youth, to go outside their comfort, and transcend upon new endeavors. Possibly, these movies were used to drive the youth to accept communism as an acceptable thing.