ARTIST DATE MOVIE: TO LIVE

I first saw this film in 1995 or '96.

I watched it again this past Friday night at home.

The movie is based on Yu Hua's novel "To Live".

The story begins some time in the 1940s. Xu Fugui (Ge You) is a local rich man's son and compulsive gambler, who loses his family property to a man named Long'er. His behaviour also causes his long-suffering wife Jiazhen (Gong Li) to leave him, along with their daughter, Fengxia and their unborn son, Youqing.

After he loses his entire family fortune, Fugui eventually reunites with his wife and children, but is forced to start a shadow puppet troupe with a partner named Chunsheng to support his family. The Chinese Civil War is occurring at the time, and both Fugui and Chunsheng are forcibly enlisted into the Kuomintang during a performance. After a heavy battle, Fugui and Chunsheng are captured by the forces of the Communist Party of China, where they quickly become entertainers for the troops. Eventually Fugui is able to return home and explain his absence, only to find out that Fengxia has become mute and lost most of her hearing due to a fever...

  
Awards and nominations

• 1994 Cannes Film Festival^[5]
  
  
  • Grand Jury Prize — Tied with Burnt by the Sun
  • Prize of the Ecumenical Jury — Tied with Burnt by the Sun
  • Best Actor — Ge You
  • Palme d'Or (nominated)
  
  
  
• BAFTA Awards, 1995
  
  
  • Best Film Not in the English Language
  
  
  
• Golden Globe Awards, 1995
  
  
  • Best Foreign Language Film (nominated)
  
  
  
• Chlotrudis Awards, 1995
  
  
  • Best Actress — Gong Li (nominated)
    
  
  
  

 

Gong first came into international prominence through close collaboration with Chinese director Zhang Yimou and is credited with helping bring Chinese cinema to Europe and the United States.

Gong Li was voted the most beautiful woman in China in 2006.

Other credtis:
Memoirs of a Geisha
Miami Vice
Curse of the Golden Flower
Hannibal Rising