China: Feature Films

Iron and Silk (1990)
Grades: 8-12+
This 94-min. movie is based on a true account of Mark Salzman, a young American man who traveled to China in the early '80s to teach English. While there, he studied under a famous (and very harsh) martial arts instructor, Pan Qingfu. Both Salzman and Pan Qingfu play themselves, giving this feature film a documentary feel. This simple film can be used to show the lives of ordinary Chinese in the wake of the Reform Period or to teach about martial arts.
(English and some Chinese with subtitles)

King of Masks (1996)
Grades: 4-12
One of Roger Ebert's favorite movies for children, this film explores the relationship between an elderly street performer in 1930s China and the young child he adopts. Good vehicle for teaching about Chinese arts, gender relationships, and the universality of love. Directed by Wu Tianming.
(Chinese language with English subtitles)

Not One Less (1999)
Grades: 8-12+
Not One Less is one of Zhang Yimou's (To Live) most recent films and it does not disappoint. This true story about one rural fourteen-year-old substitute teacher's efforts to locate a student who had run away to the city, is reenacted by most of the actual people involved in the situation. The film is Zhang's attempt to reveal the increasing gap between the quality of life of urban and rural people in China, while at the same time sharing a moving and uplifting tale that is meaningful to all ages.
(Chinese language with English subtitles)

To Live (1994)
Grades: 11-12+
Directed by the highly esteemed director, Zhang Yimou, this drama follows a Chinese family through the Communist Revolution, the Great Leap Forward, and the Cultural Revolution. The essential theme of this movie is that the will to survival, not ideology, dominates people's lives. Some parts might need to be edited for inappropriate content.
(Chinese language with English subtitles)

Yellow Earth (1984)
Grades: 9-12+
Directed by Chen Kaige (Farewell My Concubine), Yellow Earth is a powerful story about a solider who goes to a remote village to collect folk songs and ends up inspiring a poor fourteen year old girl to join the Communist army. This film is arguably propaganda for the Communist Party, but the problems faced by the girl and her family were very real in the 1930s and so were the emotions that drove young people to risk their lives fighting the Socialist cause. This film should be viewed critically, but not disregarded.
(Chinese language with English subtitles)