Red Sorghum
Tuesday 24 June 2008 21:45-22:30 (Radio 3)
Rana Mitter and guests discuss Red Sorghum, Zhang Yimou's classic 1987 film about peasant life in 1930s China. The winner of several awards, it was Zhang's directorial debut and launched the career of actress Gong Li.
Part of Radio 3's Focus on China season.
Red Sorghum
Red Sorghum
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As part of the BBC Radio 3 Focus on China season, the Nightwaves Landmark is the film Red Sorghum, the debut of China's most important director Zhang Yimou, and a real turning point in modern Chinese cinema. It brought explicit sexuality and political commentary together in an explosive mixture that has endured the twenty years since its release in 1988. It made a star of its heroine Gong Li, who became the most famous actress in China.
Rana Mitter is joined by the documentary maker Sun Shu-Yun, critic Chloe Starr and film director Asif Kapadia o discuss the film and its impact
They consider Red Sorghum's subversion of the idealised Communist peasant hero tradition, and the emergence centre screen of a more bawdy but most importantly human portrayal of country people in China, as shocking to many audiences as its candid treatment of sex. Rana and guests discuss Zhang Yimou's bold use of colour and sound, and how the film was interpreted by many as a protest against the regimented way of life imposed on China by the Cultural Revolution.
