FOREIGN AFFAIRS: DREAMS, EVERYBODY'S FINE, JU DOU
But there's a secret being hidden by Matteo's children, and that secret, and how the film changes when it's revealed, seems out of place. And while people may like the film just to see the locations being filmed (among them Rome and Naples), this is one of those road movies that ends up going nowhere).
While Tornatore came from an emerging Italian cinema, director Zhang Yimou comes from an emerging Chinese cinema. This is ironic because, unlike Tornatore and Kurosawa, who had just money troubles, Yimou had to deal with the Chinese government, which banned many of his films, including JU DOU, his third and the one that put him on the map. Despite this controversy, or maybe because of it, the Oscars rewarded him with a nomination for Best Foreign Film in 1990.
Ju Dou is also the name of a woman (played by Yimou's then-girlfriend and frequent collaborator Gong Li) who lives in 1920's China on a farm, until she's bought by Yang Tiquang (Li Baotian), an old and wealthy textile merchant, to be his bride and the mother of his children. Unfortunately for Ju Dou, Yang is sadistic and cruel towards her, especially when she's unable to bear him children (it turns out he's impotent). Yang's nephew Jinshan (Li Wei), a simpleton, also works at the mill, and is also cruelly treated by Yang. It's through him that Ju Dou decides to take revenge. She and Jinshan have a brief affair, she conceives a boy (after telling Yang that it's his), and the two arrange for Yang to get into an "accident" that cripples him for life. What they don't know is her son will end up making her pay for that crime.
It's easy to see why Yimou became such an acclaimed director. As with Kurosawa, he uses images and colors brilliantly, particularly those used at the mill. Likewise, it's also easy to see how Li became internationally known thanks to her work with Yimou; she's talented and beautiful, and dominates every scene she's in. But the story is pretty obvious and symbolic, and despite the vibrancy of how it looks, there's a detachment to it that prevents the viewer from becoming fully engaged. Then again, back in 1990, foreign films weren't engaging Americans too much anyway.
Latest Articles