Cheryl's homework
Recommended films

You’ll get more out of your trip to China if you do some “homework” before you leave home.

Homework doesn’t have to mean hitting the books, though reading a couple on China certainly won’t hurt anything. There’s a way to do homework on China which is easy and fun. Watch movies! 

Here are some of my favorites which will help you to better understand the Middle Kingdom:
  • The Last Emperor is an extravaganza about Pu Yi, the last emperor of China who ascended to the imperial throne when he was 2 years old. He was emperor for less than three years before being forced to abdicate. This movie follows his life from toddlerhood until his death six decades later.
  • Mao's Last Dancer is based on a true story. A young boy from the country is sent to ballet school in Beijing where he becomes an accomplished dancer. He is given an opportunity to dance with the Houston ballet for a few months. When he is ordered to return to China, his refusal to go home creates an international incident.
  • The Lady Hermit stars women in this Chinese kung fu action movie. The Lady Hermit, a kung fu master, lives quietly as a maid known as Miss Leng while she recuperates from injuries inflicted by her arch enemy, the evil Black Demon. Another young woman, who does amazing things with a whip, becomes her student as they seek to bring the Black Demon down. In Chinese, with English subtitles.   
  • The Amazing Panda Adventure is about efforts to save the panda from extinction. The panda is on the international endangered species list. This  movie features two cute kids who rescue a cute panda cub from ugly poachers. It was filmed in southwest China.
  • Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon has been described as a chick flick, but it also has some great martial arts scenes. This movie takes place in various parts of China. It won an Oscar for Best Foreign Movie in 2001. English subtitles.
  • The Story of Qiu Ju stars Gong Li as a poor peasant’s wife who takes on the system when she believes her husband has been wronged. The film won the Best Actress and Best Film awards at the 1992 Venice Film Festival.
  • China's First Emperor is a History Channel documentary on Qinshihuang who unifed China during the Warring States period.  He ordered the Terracotta Army in Xi'an built to guard him in eternity.
  • Farewell My Concubine is a controversial film about a Peking Opera star. It is violent in places. Gong Li also is featured in this movie.
  • The Blue Kite is told from a child’s point of view, and is a condemnation of China’s political system in the 1950s and ‘60s.
  • Xiu Xiu: the Sent Down Girl was banned in China because of its condemnation of the cultural revolution. Directed by Joan Chen, it is the story of a young woman’s loss of innocence in the waning days of the cultural revolution. Graphic sex scenes.
  • The Silk Road, an ancient world of adventure. Chinese and Japanese film crews teamed up in this multi-part series of life along the ancient Silk Road. The crews traveled by camel, train and motor vehicle as they retraced the old trade route through China, from Chang’an (now Xi’an) to Kashgar.
  • The Children of Huang Shi is a gripping story of a journalist leading a band of Chinese orphans to safety from the Japanese during World War II. The group traveled from just outside of Nanjing to west China. Based on a true story.
Picture
"The Last Emperor was filmed at the Forbidden City.


My blog

Picture
I also write about China in a blog called
Cheryl’s China. It is designed to complement this web site. It’s updated more frequently than this website, so check it out!

Recommended reading

If you'd rather read than watch movies, check out the books on my recommended reading list. Many of the books are in my personal library.
___________________________________
Contact Cheryl
Copyright 2012 by Cheryl Probst. All rights reserved.