Movie Review: Raise the Red Lantern - Essay Example

However, the patriarchal system doesn’t recognize her values and she finds herself drawn into a vortex of misfortunes where she had to compete with the other wives to receive favor from her husband. The story reflects the social conditions existing in the country and is a staunch comment on the subjugation women. Yimou conveys several profound messages through this movie to shake the Chinese conscience to awareness about injustices rampant in the community. Many of his own people harbor resentment that Yimou is revealing a murkier side of their country to the outside world.

However, it sounds quite interesting to examine whether Yimou seeks to also penetrate the deeper intrigue of women’s intolerance and jealousy for one another than just touching the clichéd surface perspective of male domination. The symbolism of the red lanterns with which the master decorates the courtyard of the mistress he chooses to sleep with on a particular night, illustrates the women’s status in society. They had no choice about the man they choose to sleep with; but essentially they should feel privileged to share the bed with the man they marry.

Women received conjugal bliss only if the man chooses to give it to her. On the other hand, the man has the luxury of picking his choice from a variety of mates, thereby relegating women to a degraded status of objects to be used by man’s whims. Thus the movie paints for its audience a vivid image of the apathetic attitude of the community towards women. The Chinese society during the 1920s offered no freedom or opportunity to the women. In the movie, women are not to venture outside the sanheyuan – the mansion; its walls claim to protect them, but figuratively those serve as barriers to their freedom.

Songlian, though educated, never receives an opportunity to utilize her education in any manner. Meishen, the master’s third wife, who sang for an opera before her marriage with Chen, never gets to improve her talent and