Photos

Nanping village in southern Anhui is the filming location of two of the most internationally acclaimed Chinese movies: Ju Dou by Zhang Yimou in 1990 and Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon by Ang Lee in 2000.

This picture shows Xuzhi Hall, which was the setting for the film Ju Dou.
Props from the film set still decorate the hall.

---

The patriarchal system played a vital role in maintaining social order in feudal China, solidifying the masses and stabilizing clan development. A clan's ancestral hall such as Xuzhi Hall, was the spiritual home of its members.

A colorful meter-long cloth hangs in the patio of the traditional three-hall-and-two-courtyard style house and constitutes a sharp contrast with the dark and grey tones of other structures, like a personification of the contrast in the emotions of the characters in Ju Dou.

---

Zhang Yimou (°1951) is an internationally acclaimed Chinese filmmaker. He made his directorial debut in 1987 with the film Red Sorghum. One of Zhang's recurrent themes is a celebration of the resilience, even the stubbornness, of Chinese people in the face of hardships and adversities. His works are particularly noted for their usage of colour, as can be seen in his early movies like Red Sorghum or Raise the Red Lantern and in later martial arts or 'wuxia' films, such as Hero and House of Flying Daggers.

---

Ju Dou (菊豆) is a 1990 film directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Gong Li as the title character. The film is a tragedy, focusing on the character of Ju Dou, a beautiful young woman who has been sold as a wife to Jinshan, an old cloth dyer. As the third wife, she is repeatedly mistreated by her impotent husband, for failing to bear him an heir. The heroine later has an affair with her husband's nephew and conceives a boy who eventually kills his biological father under the unbreakable feudal traditions. Heavy stuff!

Ju Dou is notable for being shot in vivid Technicolor long after the process had been abandoned in the US.

---

Just in case...

My all-time favourite Zhang Yimou pictures are (1) Red Sorghum, (2) Hero and (3) Ju Dou.

---

more info on:
http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90782/92900/6716774.html

ISO-400