Summer Palace
by Lou Ye
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Bai Xueyun, Cui Lin, Duan Long, Guo Xiaodong, Hao LeiDirector: Lou Ye
Brand: UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP DISTRIBUTION
Cinematographer: Hua Qing
Composer: Peyman Yazdanian
Editor: Zeng Jian
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: Mandarin Chinese (Original Language); German (Original Language); English (Subtitled)
Format: Color, DVD-Video, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 140 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-03-11
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Palm Pictures
Movie Reviews of Summer Palace
Movie Review: Too much sex.
Summary: 1 Stars
I got through about half an hour of this movie. It has way too much graphic sex. The movie is in my trash now. I don't like the sexual direction that Chinese cinema is heading towards with movies like this. It seems that an era of Chinese cinema is ending while a new one is beginning, and I don't like what has started with movies like this, Lust Caution, and 2046. No more Lou Ye movies for me.
Summary of Summer Palace
Summer Palace, a politically charged drama from director Lou Ye (Purple Butterfly, Suzhou River), telling the story of Chinese political upheaval through the eyes of protagonist Yu Hong (Lei Hao) who moves from her rural community to embrace life in Beijing. Spanning nearly 20 years, the film elucidates the mindset of the Chinese revolutionary youth during the 1980s and into the new millennium through its narration by Hong, who reads diary excerpts to set scenes. Though footage of the Tiananmen Square demonstrations spliced in among the dramatized imagery relegated Summer Palace to banned status by the Chinese government, the film feels tame compared to Western dramas. In it, Yu falls in love with Zhou Wei (Xiaodong Guo), who haunts her in later relationships once she leaves school. Strikingly romantic, Summer Palace is slow-paced but cinematically lovely, with long sequences illustrating dorm room life, dates, dinner parties, and Hong's intimate exchanges with girlfriends like Li Ti (Ling Hu). Dark indoor settings alternate with sunlit outdoor moments, to set a moody, reflective tone. As Hong matures emotionally and sexually, we meet other lovers like Xiao Jun (Lin Cui), but passion between her and Zhou Wei never weakens. To the film's credit, the love story doesn't flatten or oversimplify the complex historical plot that explains how innocent students could be considered threats to conservative political regimes. Though meandering, Summer Palace encapsulates an important moment in Chinese history and will especially enlighten viewers to the nuances of people struggling for freedom. --Trinie DaltonFrom the director of Purple Butterfly & Suzhou River comes Lou Ye's sprawling epic Summer Palace. Yu Hong (Lei Hao) is a rebellious young woman from a small Chinese town transplanted to a politically charged Beijing University in the late 1980s. The country's social turmoil is witnessed through its disaffected youth whose newfound sexuality and activism culminate in violent suppression. Spanning nearly 20 years of Chinese history Summer Palace projects the country's struggle for definition through the eyes and heart of a young woman ill-equipped to handle it. While drifting between the arms of two different men her love fervent for both Yu Hong's existential crisis mirrors that of her nation. Will the chaos of society lead her to its same tragic fate?System Requirements:Running Time: 140 minutes Language: Mandarin Chinese / German Subtitles: EnglishFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: FOREIGN/GERMAN Rating: NR UPC: 660200316228 Manufacturer No: PALMDV3162
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