do you know any good Chinese language films or movies to watch? i'm kind of a beginner but still
hey! so the only film i’ve seen in chinese is “the witness.” it’s a thriller and i’m an absolute chicken about scary movies but i actually found it quite interesting. here’s a link to the trailer if you’re curious: click (tw car crash, kidnapping, and attempted murder).
if anyone else has any suggestions please leave them in the comments/reblogs! i’d love to discover new films/dramas/etc to watch! preferably not thrillers tho (at least for me haha).
I highly recommend Farewell to My Concubine. The book and the movie are truly amazing :)
Agreed! Farewell My Concubine is really good!! Here are some of my favourites: 喜宴 (The Wedding Banquet). Taiwan/USA, 1993, dir. Ang Lee. romantic comedy about a gay Taiwanese who decides to marry a woman to please his parents (and to get her a green card) - but then they come to visit!! 飲食男女 (Eat Drink Man Woman). Taiwan, 1994, dir. Ang Lee. comedy-drama, it will make you very very hungry. 臥虎藏龍 (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).Taiwan/Hong Kong/China, 2000, dir. Ang Lee. Ok ok half the cast are not Mandarin native speakers, but hey, they can fly!
大红灯笼高高挂 (Raise the Red Lantern). China, 1991, dir. Zhang Yimou. drama, set in the 1920s, about a woman who becomes the fourth concubine of a wealthy man, and must learn to adjust to that new life.
活着 (To Live). China, 1994, dir. Zhang Yimou. historical drama, starts in the 40s, ends somewhere in the 70s, and depicts the struggles of a family during the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. (iirc it was banned in China)
蝴蝶 (Butterfly). Hong Kong, 2004, dir. Yan Yan Mak. romantic drama about two women falling in love. One character speaks only in Cantonese, the other only in Mandarin. (all the side characters speak in Cantonese though)
悲情城市 (A City of Sadness). Taiwan, 1989, dir. Hou Hsiao-hsien. historical drama, a must-see if you are interested in Taiwanese history. Takes place during Taiwan’s martial law period and the atrocities committed during that time. (side note: this is the only movie of Hou Hsiao-hsien I’ve watched, but I hear his other ones, especially 戲夢人生 (The Puppetmaster) are really good as well)
I just realized those are all pretty old… so have one more recent one (I hope someone can add more): 闪光少女 (Our Shining Days). China, 2017, dir. Wang Ran. comedy-drama. It’s… a bit silly. But cute. It’s about the students of Chinese orchestra competing against the students of Classical Orchestra. Everybody looks down on Chinese orchestra, so they try to show everyone how cool Chinese instruments are. Nice soundtrack!
That’s all I can think of right now. I hope you find something you like!
