Yellow Earth

The film, Yellow Earth, takes place in the early spring of 1939. The protagonist, Gu Qing, also known as Brother Gu, is a solider for the Eight Route Army. He is sent to the rural village in Shaanxi to collect folk songs for the CCP so they can gain a better understanding on how the peasants live. There he meets the poor widowed farmer living with his son and daughter. At first, the family is apprehensive of him but slowly, they start to warm up to him. He teaches them about Communism and how the world around them is starting to change. In return, Gu Qing learns more about folk songs and the old traditions that still exist in the village.

Through interactions between Gu Qing and the family members, the audience is able to see the differences between “old” and “new”. Cui Qiao, the young daughter, is amazed when Gu Qing tells her about the females in army fighting the Japanese and having so much freedom which is something she didn’t think was possible. She is also shocked when she sees Gu Qing sowing because to her, that is something that only women do. Gu Qing teaches the family about “new” ideas that they have never heard of before. For instance, girls in the south are not forced into arranged marriages and they can read and write. These ideas are shocking revelations to the family because it is departure from what they consider the norm. However, Da Shu is reluctant to follow Gu Qing’s ideas and just responds that the people in village have a way of living. Gu Qing makes a comment that the girl that got married at the start of the film was married off at such a young age and that things are done differently in the south. At that, Da Shu just scoffs at the notion of girls getting married at an older age and with someone that they love. Yet, the young Cui Qiao, absorbs everything that Gu Qing and eagerly wants to change. She wants to find her own identity and gain the freedom that she so desperately seeks. Through Cui Qiao, Chen Kaige is able to show the audience the importance of youth and how they will be able to bring about change and new ideas.

In the end, Cui Qiao is seen rowing away and her future is a mystery to the audience. One thing that is certain is that the times are changing and everything is slowly becoming new even if some are reluctant for change.