8.3/10
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To Live (1994)

Huo zhe (original title)
Not Rated | | Drama , War | 16 December 1994 (USA)
To Live Poster
After Fugui and Jiazhen lose their personal fortunes, they raise a family and survive difficult cultural changes during 1940s to 1970s China.

Director:

Yimou Zhang

Writers:

Wei Lu (screenplay), Hua Yu (novel) | 1 more credit »

Stars:

You Ge, Li Gong, Ben Niu | See full cast & crew »
Reviews

On Disc

at Amazon

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 5 wins & 4 nominations. See more awards »

Photos

See all 211 photos »
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Edit

Cast

Cast overview:
You Ge ... Xu Fugui
Li Gong ... Xu Jiazhen
Ben Niu Ben Niu ... Town Chief
Wu Jiang ... Wan Erxi
Deng Fei Deng Fei ... Xu Youqing
Tao Guo ... Chunsheng
Tianchi Liu Tianchi Liu ... Xu Fengxia, as an adult
Zongluo Huang Zongluo Huang ... Fu Gui's Dad
Yanjin Liu Yanjin Liu ... Fu Gui's Mom
Dahong Ni ... Long'er
Lian-Yi Li Lian-Yi Li ... Sgt. Lao Quan
Cong Xiao Cong Xiao ... Xu Fengxia, as a teenager
Lu Zhang Lu Zhang ... Fengxia, as a child
Yan Su
See full cast »
Edit

Storyline

Fugui and Jiazhen endure tumultuous events in China as their personal fortunes move from wealthy landownership to peasantry. Addicted to gambling, Fugui loses everything. In the years that follow he is pressed into both the nationalist and communist armies, while Jiazhen is forced into menial work. They raise a family and survive, managing "to live" from the 40's to the 70's in this epic, but personal, story of life through an amazing period. Written by docraven

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

chinese history | cultural revolution | gambling | chinese opera | mao tse tung | See All (232) »

Genres:

Drama | War

Certificate:

Not Rated | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
Edit

Details

Country:

China | Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin

Release Date:

16 December 1994 (USA) See more »

Also Known As:

To Live See more »
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Box Office

Gross USA:

$2,332,728
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

Production Co:

ERA International,Shanghai Film Studios See more »
Show more on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Dolby | Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See full technical specs »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Clint Eastwood's personal favorite of the competition entries at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival where Eastwood was Jury President. See more »

Quotes

Little Bun: [playing with chickens] When will they grow up?
Xu Jiazhen: Very soon.
Little Bun: And then?
Xu Fugui: And then... the chickens will turn into geese... and the geese will turn into sheep... and the sheep will turn into oxen.
Little Bun: And after the oxen?
Xu Fugui: After oxen...
Xu Jiazhen: After oxen, Little Bun will grow up.
Little Bun: I want to ride on an ox's back.
Xu Jiazhen: You will ride on an ox's back.
Xu Fugui: Little Bun won't ride on an ox... he'll ride trains and planes... and life will get better and better.
See more »

Connections

Referenced in The Safety in Rubber (2007) See more »

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User Reviews

 
My Honest Opinion
24 March 2011 | by amandla-10-725802 – See all my reviews

This is the best movie that I have ever seen.

I watched this movie because I was taking a class on the politics of China. When I saw that this movie covered such an expansive time period I thought "great, I will learn something." That I did. I cried, I cheered, I stayed up very late... I made my then future husband watch it... he liked it too, not as much as I do.

I tell everyone in conversations about movies that this one is my all time favorite. It took the place of American Beauty, a movie that I have watched about eleven times.

So, I recommend it. If I had a lot of money I would pay people to watch this. It is THAT great.
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