Hibiscus Town

Infobox Chinese Film
name = Hibiscus Town


image_size =
caption =
director = Xie Jin
producer =
writer = Ah Cheng
Xie Jin
Gu Hua (novel)
starring = Jiang Wen

music = Ge Yan
cinematography = Lu Junfu
editing =
distributor =
released = 1986
runtime = 164 mins.
language = Mandarin
budget =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
amg_id = 1:176203
imdb_id = 0087301
jianti = 芙蓉镇
fanti = 芙蓉鎮
pinyin = Fú róng zhèn

"Hibiscus Town" is a 1986 Chinese film directed by Xie Jin, based on a novel by the same name written by Gu Hua. The film, a melodrama, follows the life and travails of a young woman who lives through the turmoil of the Cultural Revolution and as such is an example of the "scar drama" genre that emerged in the 1980s and 1990s that detailed life during that period. The film was produced by the Shanghai Film Studio.

Cast

*Liu Xiaoqing as Hu Yuyin, the film's heroine, a young woman who is caught up in the political turmoil of China's Cultural Revolution
*Liu Linian as Li Guigui, Yuyin's first husband
*Jiang Wen as Qin Shutian, a "bourgeoisie" rightist who falls in love with Yuyin

Plot

The film follows Hu Yuyin (Liu Xiaoqing), a young woman in a small Chinese town who prior to the Cultural Revolution is happily married and runs a successful roadside food stall. With the coming of political turmoil, however, she is found to be a "rich peasant." Both her home and business are taken from her and her husband, Li Guigui (Liu Linian) committs suicide in despair.

After the first waves of the Revolution have ended, Yuyin returns to the town, now relegated to a lowly street sweeper. She then falls in love with another former "bad element", Qin Shutian (Jiang Wen. After becoming pregnant, however, even this seemingly innocent relationship attracts the outrage of local party members.

Reception

Awards

*Golden Rooster Awards, 1987
**Best Film
**Best Actress — Liu Xiaoqing
**Best Supporting Actress — Xu Ning
**Best Art Direction— Jin Qifen
*Hundred Flowers Awards, 1987
**Best Film — tied with "Sun Zhongshan" and "Xue zhan Taierzhuang"
**Best Actor — Jiang Wen
**Best Actress — Liu Xiaoqing
**Best Supporting Actor — Zhu Shibin
*Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 1988
**Crystal Globe, Grand Prix

Further reading

* Browne, Nick. "Society and Subjectivity: On the Political Economy of Chinese Melodrama," in New Chinese Cinemas: Forms, Identities, Politics. Cambridge: CUP, 1994, 57-87.
* Hayford, Charles W. "Hibiscus Town: Revolution, Love and Bean Curd." In Chris Berry, ed., Chinese Films in Focus: 25 New Takes. London: BFI Publishing, 2003, 120-27.
* Kipnis, Andrew. "Anti-Maoist Gender: Hibiscus Town's Naturalization of a Dengist Sex/Gender/Kinship System." Asian Cinema 8, 2 (Winter 1996-97): 66-75.

See also

*Cultural Revolution- background of the film

External links

*imdb title|id=0087301|title=Hibiscus Town
*amg_title|id=1:176203 |title=Hibiscus Town
* [http://www.china.org.cn/english/features/film/85141.htm "Hibiscus Town"] article from China.org
* [http://www.dianying.com/en/title/frz1986 "Hibiscus Town"] from the Chinese Movie Database
* [http://people.cohums.ohio-state.edu/denton2/courses/c505/temp/hibiscustown.html Overview and questions] of "Hibiscus Town" from Ohio State University