Review of Raise the Red Lantern (1991) by Matthew F. J — 11 Feb 2015
Zhang Yimou explores with this beautiful film the story of a young woman who's married to an older man and becomes his fourth wife. Depicting the daily life of these women , forced to live together under the same roof and competing the favor of their master.
The film is slow, very interestingly shot and filled with colors and symbols that gives a unique dimension to a film extremely well thought and executed. Gong Li is gorgeous and manages to portray her character with class, interiorizing most of her emotions that we will understand through her eyes and body language.
It's film based on details and one must pay a lot of attention to fully understand what's going on. Raise the Red Lantern is one of these atmosphere films, calm on the surface but holding a storm of emotions on the inside and a vibrant study of the female condition in China prior to the cultural revolution.
This review of Raise the Red Lantern (1991) was written by Matthew F. J on 11 Feb 2015.
Raise the Red Lantern has generally received very positive reviews.
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