Yellow Earth
Encyclopedia
Yellow Earth is a 1984
Chinese drama film
. It was the directorial debut for Chen Kaige
. The film's notable cinematography
is by Zhang Yimou
. At the 24th Hong Kong Film Awards
ceremony on 27 March 2005, a list of 100 Best Chinese Motion Pictures was tallied, and Yellow Earth came in fourth.
Yellow Earth begins with a scene depicting a communist soldier walking several miles. He reaches a small village where he is assigned to live with a poor family with the task of recording local folk songs for use in the army later. He learns the hardships of peasant life and especially of that of a peasant girl named Cuiqiao. The story then focuses on the girl, who at only age 14 is forced to marry a significantly older man as her wedding dowry was used to pay for her mother's funeral and brother's engagement. The Communist soldier "Brother Gu" attempts to dissuade Cuiqiao from running off and joining the CCP, but recognizes her despair. After her marriage, Cuiqiao crosses the Yellow River
at night. Her fate is unknown. The story then fast forwards to a rain dance being performed by the villagers, as the land has dried up and peoples' crops have died.
1984 in film
-Events:* The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name.* Tri-Star Pictures, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS, releases its first film....
Chinese drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
. It was the directorial debut for Chen Kaige
Chen Kaige
Chen Kaige is a Chinese film director and a leading figure of the fifth generation of Chinese cinema. His films are known for their visual flair and epic storytelling.-Early life:...
. The film's notable cinematography
Cinematography
Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
is by Zhang Yimou
Zhang Yimou
Zhang Yimou is a Chinese film director, producer, writer and actor, and former cinematographer. He is counted amongst the Fifth Generation of Chinese filmmakers, having made his directorial debut in 1987 with Red Sorghum....
. At the 24th Hong Kong Film Awards
24th Hong Kong Film Awards
Ceremony for the 24th Hong Kong Film Awards was held on 27 March 2005 in the Hong Kong Coliseum and hosted by Carol Cheng and Lawrence Cheng. Twenty-nine winners in nineteen categories were unveiled, with films Kung Fu Hustle and 2046 being the year's biggest winners...
ceremony on 27 March 2005, a list of 100 Best Chinese Motion Pictures was tallied, and Yellow Earth came in fourth.
Background
Yellow Earth is set in early Spring 1939. The CCP (Chinese Communist Party) and the KMT (Kuomintang) have stopped fighting one another and are working together to overwhelm the invading Japanese forces. The provinces are divided into KMT-controlled areas and CCP-controlled areas. Shaanxi is divided into three sections: the northernmost and southernmost are KMT-controlled, the middle is CCP. As a result of the collaboration between the two parties, navigation between the provinces is allowed.Plot
Gu Qing, a soldier from the propaganda department of the CCP Eight Route Army in CCP-controlled Shaanxi, travels alone from Yen'an to the northern KMT-controlled area of Shaanxi, Shaanbei, with the task of collecting the peasants' folk songs in order to re-write them with communist lyrics in order to boost the morale of the Eight Route Army soldiers.Yellow Earth begins with a scene depicting a communist soldier walking several miles. He reaches a small village where he is assigned to live with a poor family with the task of recording local folk songs for use in the army later. He learns the hardships of peasant life and especially of that of a peasant girl named Cuiqiao. The story then focuses on the girl, who at only age 14 is forced to marry a significantly older man as her wedding dowry was used to pay for her mother's funeral and brother's engagement. The Communist soldier "Brother Gu" attempts to dissuade Cuiqiao from running off and joining the CCP, but recognizes her despair. After her marriage, Cuiqiao crosses the Yellow River
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
at night. Her fate is unknown. The story then fast forwards to a rain dance being performed by the villagers, as the land has dried up and peoples' crops have died.
Main characters
- Da Shu - Father of Cuiqiao.
- Cuiqiao (翠巧 Cuìqiǎo) - The main character and protagonist in the film.
- Gu Qing (顾 青 Gù Qīng), or Brother Gu - The Communist Party soldier who stays with Cui Qiao's family while fulfilling his mission to collect folk songs from the outer provinces.
- Hanhan (憨憨 Hānhān) - Cuiqiao's brother
External links
- Yellow Earth at the Chinese Movie Database