Ju Dou (1990)

A woman married to the brutal and infertile owner of a dye mill in rural China conceives a boy with her husband's nephew but is forced to raise her son as her husband's heir without ... See full summary »

Directors:

Fengliang Yang, Yimou Zhang

Writer:

Heng Liu

Stars:

Ma Chong, Li Gong, Baotian Li

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Ma Chong
Zhijun Cong
Wu Fa
Li Gong	...	Ju Dou
Jia Jin
Baotian Li	...	Yang Tian-qing
Wei Li	...	Yang Jin-shan
Xingli Niu
Yang Qianbin
Zhang Yi	...	Tianbai as child
Jia Zhaoji
Ji-an Zheng	...	Yang Tian-bai as a Youth

Storyline

A woman married to the brutal and infertile owner of a dye mill in rural China conceives a boy with her husband's nephew but is forced to raise her son as her husband's heir without revealing his parentage in this circular tragedy. Filmed in glowing technicolour, this tale of romantic and familial love in the face of unbreakable tradition is more universal than its setting.

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Plot Keywords:

dye | tragedy | sadism | domestic violence | push cart | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

Japan China

Language:

Mandarin

Release Date:

April 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amor E Sedução

Box Office

Gross:

$1,986,433 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

China Film Co-Production Corporation, China Film Release Import and Export Company, Cineplex Odeon Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Siskel & Ebert: Leave It to Beaver/MoneyTalks/Mimic/Masterminds/Gabbeh (1997)

User Reviews

Chinese patriarchal madness

Gong Li is just about one of the most beautiful actresses in the world today. It is hard to believe that she has been acting for 20 years.

This is one of her earlier works, and it is an excellent example of her talent. It is also one of the early films for Yimou Zhang, who also directed Gong Li in Curse of the Golden Flower. He shows the promise of a great director in this film.

There is not much that is pleasant her. Ju Dou (Gong Li) is bought by an evil man who has beaten two wives to death for not bearing him a son. She is beaten mercilessly and he has constant sex with her to have a son.

The problem is not his wives, but him, and she has a son secretly with his nephew (Baotian Li). It saves her life, but matters continue to get more and more complicated until the final tragedy.

One of the really interesting features of the film is the Chinese funeral ritual.

The film is a great example of the early work of two great talents, but do not think that early means weak, as they were bother strong from the beginning.