By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Zhang Yimou
Starring: Dongyu Xhou | Meijuan Xi | Rina Sa | Shawn Dou | Xuejian Li
Original language title: Shan zha shu zhi lian
Country: china
Year: 2012
Running time: 114
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1554523/
Thom says: “With so many great films behind him (including RAISE THE RED LANTERN, CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER, HERO, SHANGHAI TRIAD, HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS, & many others) I would have thought this lovely film would have, at least, appeared in art houses around the country, but I know it never played in San Francisco, once again showing the abominable distribution problems that Asian films currently face.
”More in align with his THE ROAD HOME & RIDING ALONE FOR THOUSANDS OF MILES here the world-class director lovingly delineates the romance between two young people from different economic classes during the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s. The girl, on her road to becoming a teacher must go through societal responsibilities like singing patriotic songs and marching, and her father has been imprisoned and disgraced. Her mother might mean well for her daughter but is ridiculously strict and has told her nothing about the ‘facts of life’. The girl thinks because her guy has touched her vagina ith his fingers she has been deflowered. When her BFF turns up pregnant she is frantic. The guy however, coming from a family with wealth, is very patient with the girl and submits to almost any restriction to try to gain the goal of his beloved. I was taken aback, and almost disturbed at the peculiar shyness of the girl, it wasn’t off-putting enough to dismiss her character and she finally grew on me as she gained inner strength. The story stretches out over years and Zhang masterfully embraces his story with his brilliant skills. The subtle comments on Chines culture and politics are unerringly drawn and classically ambiguous, The hawthorn tree of the title refers to a tree that mythically sprouts red flowers instead of white. 5 cats”