The Rosetta Stone of “Fifth Generation” filmmaking, Chen Kaige’s Yellow Earth initiates a new aesthetic of formal and ideological ambiguity in Chinese cinema. The unwavering idealism of the Communist soldier is contrasted with the hopeless situation of the peasant girl against the impassive grey-yellow landscape of Northern China.
With its emphasis on regional culture and ritual, the contrapuntal use of sound and music, and cinematographer Zhang Yimou’s flattened, symmetrical compositions and vibrant colors, the film bears a passing resemblance to the work of Sergei Paradjanov. But the film’s political and humanist concerns place the individual characters within the broader context of modern Chinese history, even as the expansive landscapes of the film’s title resist this assimilation.
by Leo Goldsmith | Source: Fox Lorber VHS
15 Feb 2005 11:52 PM | Submit Comment
