Ju Dou (1990)

100% of critics liked it
(16 reviews)
86% of users liked it
(5,010 ratings)

A dark, sensual, and visually sumptuous drama, Ju Dou centers on the title character, the third wife of a wealthy silk dyer in 1920s China. Forced into marriage by poverty, Ju Dou is repeatedly mistreated and cruelly disciplined by her husband, Jin-shan, for failing to bear him an heir. Her… More A dark, sensual, and visually sumptuous drama, Ju Dou centers on the title character, the third wife of a wealthy silk dyer in 1920s China. Forced into marriage by poverty, Ju Dou is repeatedly mistreated and cruelly disciplined by her husband, Jin-shan, for failing to bear him an heir. Her suffering attracts the sympathy of Jin-shan's younger, kinder nephew, Tian-qing, and the two begin a secret affair that could have tragic consequences. Spanning the course of many years, the film's narrative takes several surprising turns, defying expectations and complicating audience sympathies. None of the film's characters is wholly heroic or evil, allowing all three central performers -- Li Bao-tian as Tian-qing, Li Wei as Jin-shan, and the luminous Gong Li as Ju Dou -- to fashion memorable, complex portrayals. Director Zhang Yimou, a former cinematographer, uses gorgeously saturated images that emphasize his story's elemental nature, which often recalls classical tragedy. Met with controversy in China due to supposed political overtones that worried government officials, Ju Dou received fairer treatment overseas, winning an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film and numerous festival prizes. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 38 min.
Directed By: Fengliang Yang, Yimou Zhang
Genres: Art House & International, Drama

In Theaters: Apr 21, 1990 Wide
On DVD: Feb 14, 2006
Studio: Live Home Video

Critic Reviews

Rita Kempley, Washington Post
As sumptuously cinematic as it is woefully fatalistic.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
The film appealed to me for two reasons. First, because of its unabashed, lurid melodrama, in which the days are filled with scheming and the nights with passion and violence. Second, because of its visual beauty.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Powerful, poignant, and visually stunning, Zhang Yimou's Ju Dou was deservedly nominated for the Best Foreign Language Oscar.
Amber Wilkinson, Eye for Film
As well as having an eye for the dramatic - such as yards of cloth tumbling from a height or flames licking up a wall - Yimou also has a way of conveying the emotion of a scene with incredible brevity.
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena
Conduzido com segurança por Yimou (ainda em início de carreira), o filme atravessa décadas e conta com um visual rico para narrar uma forte e trágica história de amor.
, Movieline
Full of incestuous overtones and punctuated with deaths by fire and water, this gripping melodrama of lust and jealousy is far more Freudian than Marxist; it casts a sultry, James M. Cainish spell.
Dan Jardine, Apollo Guide
This is a sumptuous, passionate and bleak look at sexuality and power in China.
Marjorie Baumgarten, Austin Chronicle
Delirious melodrama, Chinese style.
Chris Hicks, Deseret News, Salt Lake City
Ju Dou is an emotionally fulfilling and viscerally rewarding adult film.

Read all 9 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Randy T

A tragic love story set against the colorful backdrop of a Chinese dye mill. The fantastic cinematography makes <i>Ju-Dou</i> a treat for the eyes even though the story is heartbreaking and sad. Highly recommended!
Daisy M

The story is both unpleasant and yet interesting. Few of the characters really connected with me. Ju Dou, becomes the object of sympathy right from the start. Her life is horrible, and even the relationship with Tianqing ultimately strikes me as unsatisfying, because frankly Tianqing… More
The story is both unpleasant and yet interesting. Few of the characters really connected with me. Ju Dou, becomes the object of sympathy right from the start. Her life is horrible, and even the relationship with Tianqing ultimately strikes me as unsatisfying, because frankly Tianqing was a wimp. The character of Tianqinq comes across as childish and immature and afraid of everything. In a way, the most powerful character was the adolescent Tianbai, Ju Dou's son. He only appears in the last part of the movie, but he comes across as completely hateful and totally unemotional. It all leads up to a tragic and confusing ending. The love scenes and violence are visual limited, because of Chinese limitations, I guess, But all in all Ju Dou is a stunning film and worth to watch.
Leo L

Interesting movie.