National Cinema of China
Titles Available as of September 15, 2009

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Mainland China | Taiwan | Hong Kong

See also:
Area Studies: East Asia
National Cinema of Korea
National Cinema of Japan

Mainland China

Crouching tiger, hidden dragon. China, Hong Kong & Taiwan. 2000. (120 min.). Set in 19th-century China, two master warriors are faced with their greatest challenge when the treasured Green Destiny sword is stolen. A young aristocratic woman prepares for an arranged marriage, but soon reveals her superior fighting talents and her romantic past. As each warrior battles for justice, they come face-to-face with their worst enemy, and the enduring power of love. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 480

Da hong deng long gao gao gua = Raise the red lantern. China, Hong Kong, Taiwan. 1991. (125 min.). Songlian, an educated nineteen-year-old girl, is forced to leave college to become the fourth wife of a powerful, feudal nobleman and becomes involved in the intrigues and rivalries between his other wives. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3946, VHS 2427

Dong gong xi gong = East palace, West palace. China. 1996. (90 min.). This film focuses on a young gay Chinese writer, A-Lan who, being attracted to a young policeman, manages to have himself interrogated for a whole night. His life story which he tells during the interrogation reflects the general repression of society. The policeman's attitude shifts from the initial revulsion to fascination and finally, to attraction. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5622

Farewell my concubine. China. 1993. (172 min.). Story that spans more than 50 years in the lives of two men at the Peking Opera, friends since childhood, and the woman who comes between them. Also an absorbing drama of the period in Chinese history from the warlord era through the Cultural Revolution. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 436

Hong gao liang = Red sorghum. China. 1987. (91 min.). Beginning as a lusty romantic comedy about a nervous young bride's arrival and ensuing seduction at a remote and winery, and ending as a heroic drama of partisan resistance during the Japanese occupation. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5405, HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 5164

Huozhe = To live. China. 1994. (133 min.). The story of a prodigal son set against the backdrop of China in the tumultuous era of the 40s and beyond. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1380

Jing ke ci qin wang. China. 1998. (161 min.). "Ying Zheng, the King of Qin, has one driving ambition: to unify China's seven kingdoms into one magnificent empire. Impressed by her lover's convictions, Lady Zhao helps Ying Zheng concoct an assassination plot that would justify the conquest of Qin's most powerful enemy"--Container. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2320

Ju Dou. China. 1990. (98 min.). The abused wife of a sadistic Chinese mill owner and his overworked nephew fall in love. Only murder could free the lovers from the mill owner's tyranny - or could it? HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5404

Lan feng cheng = The blue kite. China. 1993. (138 min.). Banned in China, this film is the most acclaimed and controversial to come out of the new Chinese cinema. Told from the perspective of a young boy, Tietou, it traces the fate of a Beijing family and their neighbors through the political and social upheavals in 1950s and 60s China. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 740

Qiu Ju da guan si = The story of Qiu Ju. China. 1992. (100 min.). In a small Chinese village a farmer (Qing Lai) and his chief quarrel over land. When Qing Lai is injured by the chief, who kicks him in the groin, Qing's wife Qiu Ju begins a quixotic odyssey that takes her from her small village to the provincial capital. She is relentless in her one-woman crusade to wreak a simple justice from the proud Chief ... she wants him to apologize. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5258

Se, jie = Lust, caution. China. 2007. (159 min.). Set Japanese-occupied Shanghai, a young woman finds herself swept up in a radical plot to assassinate a ruthless and secretive intelligence agent. As she immerses herself in her role as a cosmopolitan seductress, she becomes entangled in a dangerous game of emotional intrigue, love and betrayal. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4010

Shadow magic. China. 2000. (115 min.). In Peking in 1902, an Englishman named Wallace (Jared Harris) arrives with a hand-cranked projector and a box of silent movies. Eventually, he overcomes tradition to build an audience for the new art form, films the people of China, and even shows his magic to the Empress. Most importantly, he makes a local disciple, the ambitious young technophile photographer Liu Jinglun (Xia Yu), who becomes entranced by the new invention. Liu's initial fascination with the mechanics of moving pictures quickly develops into a visionary understanding of cinema's metaphysical and political potential. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6090

Tao ma tsei = The Horse thief. China. 1986. (88 min.). Set in Tibet in the 1920s, film tells the story of Norbu, a horse thief who is driven out of his tribe and forced to live in isolation with his family. Although he repents, he is forced to steal again after the birth of a second child. The film features Tibetan landscapes and Buddhist rituals. VHS 1314

Unknown pleasures. China. 2002. (113 min.). Follows two 19-year-olds, Bin Bin and Xiao Ji, as they wander the streets and hang out in pool halls, dance clubs and karaoke bars looking for excitement. Sparks fly when Xiao Ji meets a beautiful dancer and Bin Bin begins a romantic liaison with a young student. After watching American crime movies, the temptation for easy money becomes too much and in a final attempt to break free, the two embark on a half-baked plan to rob a bank. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 858

Up the Yangtze. China. 2007. (93 min.). Life surrounding the Yangtze is changing due to the Three Gorges Dam. Filmmaker Yung Chang goes on a farewell cruise that traverses the gargantuan waterway. DVD 5086

Wo de fu qin mu qin = The road home. China. 1999. (89 min.). As a son helps his mother arrange for the burial of his father in the traditional Chinese custom of his mother's village, the beautiful and touching story of his parent's courtship unfolds. His father was from the city and came to his mother's village to become the schoolmaster. In the days of arranged marriages, the son discovers that his parents marriage was the first marriage based on love. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5298

Xiao cheng zhi chun = Spring in a small town. China. 1948. (90 min.). A young woman married to a depressed man finds herself face to face with her first love, and the feelings she had for him. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4698

Xingfu shiguang = Happy times. China. 2000. (106 min.). In an attempt to impress a portly divorcée that has caught his eye, an unemployed factory worker poses as the wealthy manager of a non-existent hotel. Hoping that his fabricated success will lead to holy matrimony, he instead finds himself the guardian of the woman's blind stepdaughter. Now, as the lies get more complicated and the deception more difficult to sustain, the sweet young blind girl and the crazy middle-aged man find themselves forming an emotional friendship that is as touching as it is unlikely. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5257

Yao a yao, yao dao wai po qiao = Shanghai triad. China. 1995. (107 min.). A young boy fresh from the countryside is assigned to serve the girlfriend of an organized crime boss. A bloody assault forces the wounded boss and his assistants to a remote island, where they re-group and plan their strategy of revenge. Meanwhile, his girlfriend befriends the boy and two naive neighbors with tragic results. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 45

Yi ge dou bu neng shao = Not one less. China. 1999. (106 min.). A young woman is comes to a remote Chinese village to be a substitute teacher. Barely older than her students, the shy girl is charged with keeping the class intact for one month or she won't be paid. When one of her students disappears into the city to find work, the stubborn teacher is determined to follow the boy and bring him back to school. Once in the city, her simple peasant pleas fall on deaf ears, and only when the manager of the local television station sympathizes does her search bear fruit. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5247

Taiwan

Ai ch`ing wan sui = Vive l'amour. Taiwan. 1994. (118 min.). May, a chic and seductive real estate agent, and Ah-jong, a street merchant, meet by chance and begin to use a vacant apartment for their impulsive sexual liaisons. A bizarre love triangle is created when a shy young gay man hides in the same apartment and spies on the couple. VHS 6070

Hai shang hua = Flowers of Shanghai. Taiwan. 1998. (113 min.). Set in late nineteenth-century Shanghai and takes place in an elegant brothel. With its own highly ritualized codes of behavior, the lives of the "Flower girls" depend on their ability to win, and then keep, the affections of their wealthy callers. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4158

Hei yan guan = I don't want to sleep alone. Taiwan. 2006. (118 min.). An erotic love triangle finds a young drifter who is beaten by thugs and rescued by an immigrant worker who nurses him back to health. The drifter develops a crush on a waitress and the three young people find love. Bonus features included. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3865

Hsi yen = The wedding banquet. Taiwan. 1993. (108 min.). Comedy about the age-old conflict between parents and their children. In New York, the Taiwanese half of a gay couple hopes to end his parents' matchmaking by announcing that he's engaged. What he doesn't count on is that they'll fly in to meet the bride and plan the nuptials! DVD 1873, HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 6236

Qianxi manbo = Millennium mambo. Taiwan. 2001. (101 min.). Working as a hostess in a trendy bar, a young beauty finds herself mercilessly torn betwen two men: Hao-hao, her neurotic and jealous live-in boyfriend, and Jack, the mysterious and enterpirsing gangster who may be her undoing. Chronicles the fleeting, finite blooming of a young woman. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3838

Shi qi sui de dan che = Beijing bicycle. Taiwan. 2001. (113 min.). Just as Guei, a bicycle messenger, makes his final payment for the silver mountain bike loaned by his company, he finds it stolen. After endless searching Guai discovers his bicycle is now in the hands of Jian, who bought the bicycle with stolen money. The bicycle represents an escape for both from the competitive pressures of their lives. For Guei, it means access to a job, an income, and survival. For Jian, it is the pathway to being "cool" and being in the in-group, much like what a flashy sports car represents to Western young men. Though Guei and Jian finally work out a deal, they find themselves involved in a series of unforgettable events. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4892

Tian bian yi duo yun = The wayward cloud. Taiwan. 2005. (114 min.). "Shiang-chyi runs into Hsiao-kang in a park, where he is sleeping. They start seeing each other and fall in love. In the only line of dialogue in the film she asks him: "Are you still selling watches?" He is not. He is now a porn actor. At the time there is a severe water shortage in the city. Shiang-chyi is filling empty plastic bottles with water from restrooms--Hsiao-kang is sneaking into the city's water reservoirs to bathe. The city encourages the drinking of watermelon juice in place of water.". HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5635

Tong nien wang shi = A time to live and a time to die. Taiwan. 1985. (137 min.). The film, loosely based on Hou Hsiao-hsien's life, depicts a family transplanted from mainland China to Taiwan in the early l950s. The Father dies of illness and the elder sister marries. A-ha, the protagonist, struggles to deal with adolescence. VHS 967

A touch of zen = Xia nu. Taiwan. 1969. (180 min.). "Ming Dynasty noblewoman Yang must escape from the evil eunuch Hsu. She seeks refuge at a decrepit town where she gets assistance from a naive scholar and a group of mysterious yet powerful monks." --from container. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 595

What time is it there? = Ni na bian ji dian. Taiwan. 2001. (116 min.). Hxiao Kang sells watches on the streets of Taipei for a living. Shortly after his father's death, he meets a young woman who leaves for Paris the next day. He sells her his own watch which has two dials so she can keep time with both Paris and Taipei. His brief encounter with the young woman makes him run around setting all the watches in Taipei to Paris time. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 412

Yi Yi = A one and a two. Taiwan. 2000. (173 min.). This story follows the individual lives of the Jian family. Due to many circumstances, the entire family will have to re-evaluate who they are and what their lives have become. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1114

Yin shi nan nü = Eat drink man woman. Taiwan. 1994. (124 min.). A retired master chef and widower is worried about the future of his three unmarried daughters who are skeptical about marriage. Yet he himself surprises them with his secret love affair with a young woman many years his junior. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5804

Ying xia she long = The face behind the mask. Taiwan. 1977. (93 min.). Chin Tien Wei has been elected Chief of the Martial World after his three disciples eliminate the most feared fighters. However not everyone is pleased at Wei's appointment and many anonymous fighters and wizards are sent to upset his household. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3130

Zui hao de shi guang = Three times. Taiwan. 2005. (135 min.). A rapturous and beautiful love story set in three different eras - a pool hall in 1966, a 1911 brothel, and present-day Taipei. The director brings to life the culture of each period as the tales unfold. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3837

Hong Kong

2046. Hong Kong. 2004. (128 min.). He was a writer. He thought he wrote about the future but it really was the past. In his novel, a mysterious train left for 2046 every once in a while. Everyone who went there had the same intention.....to recapture their lost memories. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1769

Ashes of time = Tung hsieh hsi tu. Hong Kong. 1994. (95 min.). A story of vagrant swordsmen obtaining vengeance for the women in their lives. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5588, VHS 6585

Chop socky: Cinema Hong Kong. Hong Kong. 2003. (55 min.). This offers an in-depth look at Hong Kong's wu xia film legacy and its influence on global cinema. From its earliest roots in Beijing Opera to Quentin Tarantino's tribute to Hong Kong martial arts action in Kill Bill, Vol. 2. All of the bases are covered, from Hong Kong cinema's first martial-arts hero, Wong Fei Hung, to the balletic choreography of Chang Che. Includes the "one-punch" impact of Bruce Lee and the evolution of kung-fu comedy as epitomized by Jackie Chan. The Hong Kong technique of editing-in-camera is thoroughly demonstrated in a multi-screen sequence, and abundant film clips provide tantalizing samples of the genre's classic films. DVD 1207

Chun guang zha xie = Happy together. Hong Kong. 1997. (97 min.). Lai Yiu-fai (Tony Leung) and Ho Po-wing (Leslie Cheung) are a pair of gay lovers living out the waning days of their relationship as expatriates in Buenos Aires. As they explore a city rich with diverse cultural influences, their romance is brought to life in a way both realistic and universal. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5295

Chung Hing sam lam = Chungking express. Hong Kong. 1994. (102 min.). The film tells the story of two lovelorn cops and the women with whom they become involved: a mysterious drug dealer dressed in a blonde wig and sunglasses, and an impulsive young dreamer. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5293, HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 5419

Die xue shuang xiong = The killer. Hong Kong. 989. (110 min.). Aggressively violent Hong Kong gangster film. A torch singer is accidentally blinded during a slaying at a night club. A policeman comes out of retirement to help solve the case and to try to help her buy a new set of corneas. In the end, this idealistic cop and the killer, his avowed enemy, form a temporary alliance against other enemies they have in common. DVD 404

Diexie jietou = A bullet in the head. Hong Kong. 1990. (118 min.). Explores themes of friendship, honor, and betrayal in the context of the Vietnam war. In 1967 Hong Kong, Ben (Leung) is engaged to Jane (Yeun), while his friends, the clownish Frank (Cheung) and the ambitious Paul (Lee) have less certain futures. On Ben's wedding night, the trio kill a local gangster. Anxious to get out of town, they agree to deliver medicine and Rolex watches to a Saigon crime lord, Mr. Leong. Upon their arrival in Vietnam, however, a terrorist attack destroys their merchandise. Broke and desperate, they ally themselves with Luke (Yam), a CIA operative out to stop Leong from assisting the Vietcong. After a shoot-out a Leong's Saigon brothel, Ben, Frank and Paul escape with a trunk of gold leaves, but are captured by the NVA and tortured. Luke arrives with the US Army to rescue them. In the melee, Paul critically wounds Frank and Ben and flees with the gold. After being nursed back to health by Buddhist monks, Ben returns to Saigon where Frank, thanks to the bullet Paul put in his head, is now a crazed drug addict. Ben tearfully puts him out of his misery. Back in Hong Kong, Ben is reunited with Jane, meets his three-year-old son for the first time, and resolves to settle the score with Paul. Paul is now a wealthy businessman, about to be named successor to a major crime boss. In front of all his associates, Ben presents Paul with Frank's bullet pierced skull. The subsequent shoot-out leaves Paul dead and Ben wounded and alone. VHS 5765

Duo luo tian shi = Fallen angels. Hong Kong. 1995. (96 min.). In the garishly lit late-night world of Hong Kong, the lives of four lonely people briefly intersect: Wong Chi-Ming, a jaded hit man who wants out of his dangerous, solitary business but is leery of emotional involvement; the Agent, the beautiful partner-in-crime he's never met, but who's fallen in love with Chi-Ming anyway; Baby, a bleached-blonde, nightcrawling cookie who's looking for love but will settle for being remembered by Chi-Ming; and He Zhiwu, a mute, overgrown child who, in the wee hours, breaks into closed-up shops, opens them for business and forces customers to shop against their will. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5294

A Fei zheng chuan = Days of being wild. Hong Kong. 1990. (89 min.). The story of six young people in the 1960s in Hong Kong interweaved with love-hate relationships and passion. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5292

Fong juk = Exiled. Hong Kong. 2006. (109 min.). The time is 1998. The setting is Macau. Every living soul jumps at every chance to make quick money before the Portuguese colony ushers in a new era under the Chinese rule. A relationship is formed between an ex-gangster trying to turn over a new leaf with his wife and newborn baby and two groups of hitmen - those who want to protect him and those who were sent to kill him. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3954

Hak se wui yi wo wai kwai = Triad election. Hong Kong. 2006. (93 min.). A second-tiered member vying aggressively for the position of godfather is restrained by the current mob boss, who isn't officially eligible for reelection, which leads to a bloody and cutthroat battle of wills between the two men. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4158

Hei she hui = Election. Hong Kong. 2005. (97 min.). In the Wo Shing Triad, the oldest gang in Hong Kong, the senior members elect a younger boss as their chairman every two years. This time, lines are divided and war starts when the voting doesn't go how it should. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3841

Hua pi zhi yinyang fawang = Painted skin. Hong Kong. 1993. (95 min.). An evil warlord torments the wandering ghost of a beautiful woman so mercilessly that her only recourse is to disguise herself with the face paint of a concubine. Her plight attracts the attention of an honorable ghost-fighter determined to set her soul free. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 459

Hua yang nian hua. Hong Kong. 2000. (98 min.). The story of two lonely people who discover in each other the intimacy they have lost in their marriages. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1520

Jing wu men = Fist of fury. Hong Kong. 1972. (102 min.). Bruce Lee plays the fictional character of Chen Jun, a student of legendary real-life martial artist Fok Yun Gap. In an epic tale of national rivalries, Lee battles against Japanese Imperialist forces determined to subjugate his people. In the most electrifying performance of his career, Bruce demonstrates complete mastery of his art in the most realistic and brutal unarmed combat ever filmed. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6138

Kung fu hustle. Hong Kong. 2004. (99 min.). Sing, a hapless gangster, must overcome his inability to wield a knife and demonstrate his mettle in order to become a member of the notorious Axe Gang. He realizes he is the greatest kung fu master of them all, destined to protect the sacred streets. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2275

Lat sau san taam = Hard boiled. Hong Kong. 1992. (126 min.). Tequila is a die-hard cop, hell-bent on bringing down the gun smugglers responsible for his partner's death. To avenge his partner's murder, Tequila joins forces with a rebel cop, and then the body count soars. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3459

Lung fu fong wan = City on fire. Hong Kong. 1987. (106 min.). "An undercover cop sent to infiltrate a notorious crime ring, Ko Chow must replace a fellow officer who was killed in a violent confrontation. But, as he earns the trust of the syndicate, he develops a tight friendship with one of the thieves. Then, when a planned heist turns into a bolldy shoot-out with police, suspicions arise about who could be the informant!" --taken from container. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3045

Man cheng jin dai huang jin jia = Curse of the golden flower. Hong Kong. 2006. (114 min). During China's Tang dynasty the emperor has taken the princess of a neighboring province as wife. She has borne him two sons and raised his eldest. Now his control over his dominion is complete, including the royal family itself. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2587

Once upon a time in China = Huang Fei-hung. Hong Kong. 1991. (128 min.). The story of young Wong Fei-hung, the legendary Cantonese martial arts master and folk hero, in the late 19th century. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 21

Qian li zou dan qi = Riding alone for thousands of miles. Hong Kong. 2005. (109 min.). When Takata Gou-ichi learns his estranged son Ken-ichi is seriously ill, he rushes to be by his side. But Ken-ichi refuses to see him. Rie, Ken-ichi's wife, gives Takata a videotape to help him get to know his son again. The mention of a promise on the tape sends Takata on an odyssey to prove his love for his son. He encounters colorful strangers, discovers human kindness...and a sense of family he thought he had lost long ago. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3826

San suk san geen hap = Zu, warriors from the magic mountain. Hong Kong. 1983. (110 min.). A long time ago, in ancient China far, far away, the Forces of Evil are about to break their bonds with the humans and rule the Earth. A young warrior must endure perilous journeys through the magical world of the Zu mountains. His quest is to locate the mythical Twin Swords which, when brought together, is the only weapon powerful enough to defeat the monstrous demons and save the mortal world. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5550

Shi mian mai fu = House of flying daggers. Hong Kong. 2004. (119 min.). During the reign of the Tang dynasty in China, a secret organization called "The House of the Flying Daggers" rises and opposes the government. Leo is a police officer who sends officer Jin to investigate a young dancer named Mei, claiming that she has ties to the "Flying Daggers" organization. Leo ends up arresting Mei, only to have Jin break her free in a plot to gain her trust and lead the police to the new leader of the secret organization. But things are far more complicated than they seem. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5246

Wong gok ka moon = As tears go by. Hong Kong. 1988. (102 min.). Already stretched to breaking in a loyalty tug of war between Triad bosses and his loose cannon partner, Wah, a rising star in the Hong Kong underworld, finds himself saddled with beautiful, ailing country cousin Ngor. As an escalating test of wills with a stubborn debtor explodes into bloodshed and a mob turncoat instigates a ruthless police crackdown, Wah's growing fascination with Ngor becomes his last chance for escape from a violent past and a dubious future. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5291

Xin Long men ke zhan = Dragon Inn. Hong Kong. 1992. (103 min). Dragon Inn becomes the chaotic center of battle between the government's villainous eunuchs and a band of righteous heroes. Set in the great northwestern deserts of China during the Ming dynasty, Dragon Inn gracefully blends precision swordplay with breathtaking cinematography. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 5675

Ying xiong = Hero. Hong Kong. 2002. (98 min.). The Kingdom of Qin obsessed with conquering all of China had long been the target of assassins throughout the other six states. No matter how hard the King tried, it seems impossible for him to defeat the three legendary assassins, Broken Sword, Flying Snow, and Sky. Suddenly, an enigmatic hero, Nameless, came to the palace bearing the legendary weapons of the slain assassins to the King and told his extraordinary tale sitting only ten paces from the King. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 596

Ying huang boon sik = A Better tomorrow. Hong Kong. 1986. (98 min.). This story of brotherhood between a policeman and his underworld brother provides an opportunity for an exploration of love and redemption. The film is both maudlin and philosophical and is remarkable for the performance of Chow Yun-Fat as the antihero, a sort of Clint Eastwood of Chinese film. VHS 2142

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