June 12, 2007
Stolid autobiographical tale of two friends sent for re-education in rural China. Worthy film.
Chung Zhi Jun, Hongwei Wang, Kun Chen
Set in the days of the Cultural Revolution, when it was a crime, sometimes punishable by death, to listen to Mozart or read Balzac or enjoy any other Western classics. Luo and Dai are guilty of being ...( read more
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DVD Release Date: December 27, 2005
Stats: 259 reviews
Flixster Reviews (259)
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August 31, 2006Loved the book, loved the movie, loved the comment Daniel Pennac made on it, about "bovarism being a textually transmited desease", see this and you'll see why. I *heart* Dai Sijie!!!
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July 13, 2006I had read the book (on which this film is based) a few years back and thought it should be made into a movie. Well, it actually had been made into a f ilm. Now that I've finally seen it, it goes to show how powerful this story is. Set during the communist re-education period of ...( read more)
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March 18, 2009I was wooed by the call of the wild,oh the poetic motion and oh the indiscreet nature of the protagonists.Mesmerizing to the end of social inflation,the political scenery is a stereotypical background,erotica and affliction in the countryside is what makes this film move around.S...( read more)
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August 18, 2009Original novel was a bestseller in France. Dai Sijie, the writer, adapted & directing his semi-autobiographical novel into a film as well. The outcome is fairly ok; just too fragmented, long & detailed at the first half. More film languages should have been used instead of such m...( read more)
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April 11, 2009how its like to be city slickers forcibly sent to a remote mountain village to become peasants
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February 18, 2009A coming-of-age story with breathtaking footage of a remote mountain village in China. It takes place during the Cultural Revolution and is about two friends who both fall in love with the same young beauty. The tale is gripping. It will make you laugh and also empathize with the...( read more)
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December 9, 2008Fantastic cinematography, inspiring music played beautifully on the violin, and great fiction depicting two young men being re-educated in Maoist China and the seamstress whose life they influence by reading novels of Balzac and other "reactionary" writers of the day.
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October 23, 2008I feel very bored watching this film maybe because my English teacher was the one making us watch this film. Again 2 Criterias alone can make this movie garbage number 1 Violence and Number 2 Sexual Content Does this movie have Violence umm NO!!! OMG this movie has not even a dec...( read more)
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Critic Reviews
October 14, 2005
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer
September 29, 2005
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
The elements in the story push all the right buttons, but the buttons don't seem to be wired to anything. full review
September 16, 2005
Ty Burr, Boston Globe
It's a lovely little movie about very big things, and the smallness both illuminates it and keeps it from greatness. full review
July 28, 2005
A.O. Scott, The New York Times
Dai Sijie's tender, touching adaptation of his own novel of the same title. full review
July 22, 2005
Nick Schager, Slant Magazine
There's something mildly seductive about its linking of passion with the wild, untamable jungle that envelops its characters. full review
February 28, 2003
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail
It's a bittersweet and lyrical mix of elements. full review
Comments
This board looks lonely. Be the first to talk about "Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress" !
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