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Epic films a record of revival

By Raymond Zhou (China Daily)
Updated: 2011-07-01 09:39

Beginning of the Great Revival, a production to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, features a cast of 108 stars. [Provided to China Daily]

The Communist Party of China (CPC) has been prominent in Chinese cinema, both onscreen and offscreen, almost since the very beginning. As early as the 1930s, CPC cells penetrated Kuomintang-controlled territories and encouraged the production of socially conscious films that carried hidden messages. These "progressive" works played cat-and-mouse games with government censors and highlighted the poor-rich divide that was the root cause of so many ills of the day.

The founding of New China catapulted screen portrayals of CPC persona up front and center. With domination came homogenization. The early image of the idealist gave way to an increasingly statue-like god, who could do no wrong. This trend reached its apex during the "cultural revolution" (1966-1976), when rigorous rules dictated every aspect of the depiction of a CPC hero, including camera angles and lighting. Acting became a series of predetermined poses.

Reform and opening up has brought a gradual transformation to screen representations of the CPC. It has become more humanized, with the CPC hero having a more-or-less normal family life, for one thing. Occasionally, a villain surfaces, but he or she is always denounced as betraying CPC principles.

The following 10 feature films, picked by film critic Raymond Zhou, exemplify the evolving role of the CPC hero as depicted in Chinese movies.

Children of Troubled Times (1935)

A pair of friends drift from Northeast China after it is occupied by Japan. They part ways when one is arrested for his revolutionary activities while the other takes the easy way out by dating a rich woman. Penned by two veteran CPC writers and starring CPC artists, the story illustrates the communist vs bourgeois paths with a crushing turbulence of the times as backdrop. The March of the Volunteers, later the national anthem of the People's Republic of China, made its first appearance in this movie.

The Eternal Wave (1958)

This thriller is about an underground CPC radio transmitter, who works in pre-1949 Shanghai and has to dodge all kinds of enemies. He has a fake marriage with another CPC member, which develops into a real romance. His last message is sent when his captors descend on his doorstep. A combination of suspense and revolutionary zeal, it casts a long shadow that can still be felt in today's wave of CPC spy dramas.

Song of Youth (1959)

Co-directed by Chen Huai'ai, father of Chen Kaige, this sweeping drama tells of revolutionary seeds that grow to be CPC foundations. College students in the 1930s who choose different paths end up in different camps, some following their hearts and the right road while others grow decadent or even betray their early comrades. The movie is based on a best-seller written by the sister of one of China's biggest female stars, Bai Yang, who failed to secure the female lead for herself. Xie Fang, a novice who got the role, achieved instant fame for infusing innocence with stamina.

Eternal in Flames (1965)

Adapted from a popular novel, which was based on real events, this iconic portrayal of the CPC underground in Chongqing in its dramatic struggle with Kuomintang, has left an indelible imprint on the public psyche throughout the generations. The images of Xu Yunfeng, Jiang Jie, Hua Ziliang and others have become archetypes and spun off into endless recreations of television series and operas of every local flavor. The locales where the real incidents took place have been turned into hot tourist destinations.

The East is Red (1965)

This mammoth all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza utilized a cast of thousands, almost all the well-known talent still allowed to work on the eve of the "cultural revolution". It chronicles half a century of CPC glory with dozens of signature numbers. Faithful to the stage spectacle, it is revolutionary glitz in a Ziegfeld style.

Pine Ridge (1965 and 1973)

This movie was made twice, right before and after the height of the "cultural revolution", which leaves a strong aftertaste. The bad guy is a "capitalist roader" who wants to peddle for a little money. He used to be a wealthy farmer, a fact he hides to avoid condemnation. His evil scheme is exposed when farmers raise their political consciousness with the guidance of an incoming CPC secretary. In a way, this movie is like Norma Rae, with local class division brewing until an outside force brings it to a boil.

Sparkling Red Star (1974)

This children's classic is set in a village that is a Red Army base in the 1930s. The main protagonist is the young son of a CPC officer, who left behind a red star. When the evil landlord comes back, the young hero, galvanized by class hatred, goes through a coming-of-age ritual that is part Home Alone and part social awakening. It was the most popular new film in the waning years of the "cultural revolution".

Jiao Yulu (1990)

This biopic centers on a county-level CPC secretary who dedicated his life to poverty relief. Much of his work had been enshrined in textbooks, yet this film version takes an approach that is realistic and not grandstanding. As a result, the title figure comes through as not only believable but also resonates with a wide swath of the public. Actor Li Xuejian portrays the hero as one of the people who steadfastly refuses to see himself as above the people. The movie won the year's Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers awards.

Iron Man (2009)

Chairman Mao Zedong wrote a couplet that summed up his economic policy: "In industry, learn from Daqing; and in agriculture, learn from Dazhai."

The story of the Daqing oil field is epitomized by Wang Jinxi, which becomes one of the parallel story lines in this new experimentation with a somewhat hoary subject. The selfless devotion of the old generation is contrasted with the dillydallying and raging materialism of the young.

Beginning of the Great Revival (2011)

The film that commemorates the 90th anniversary of CPC has a cast of 108 stars, not including a dozen actors whose scenes were deleted before the theatrical release. Sketches of events in the decade that led up to the founding of CPC in 1921 form the core of this epic that, according to the filmmakers, underpins the revolutionaries' fight for democracy.