Character Analysis: Raise the Red Lantern by Zhang Yimou - Movie Review Example

Insert of Character analysis: Raise the Red Lantern by Zhang Yimou The film raise the red lantern is a Chinese film showcasing various aspects of sexual exploitation in the Chinese society. The events in this film can be compared to those of the Japanese film woman in the dunes which as well showcases sexual exploration by a woman living in the desert within the dunes. Life for the sexual captives is not as easy as anybody may think. While the woman in the dunes offers no good reminiscences and goodies to her exploits, the rich man in the film who is involved in the affair of sexual exploitation offers almost everything her exploits require in exchange for consented sexual exploitation. Directed by Zhang Yimou, the film depicts the chronological events which unveil in the lives of the four women while in the house of their rich man (Fried). The film pictures the influence of culture in the Chinese context which derails the females dignity reducing them to nothing but sexual objects before their husbands. Culture as Giskin and Bettye note is much more adored here than the principles that govern human understanding and morality in the society thus make life quite unbearable to the new recruits. To the women, accepting the circumstances that prevails in the society and letting go of any moral standing and the power of reason is the key to surviving the harsh conditions to which they are exposed. Irrespective of their former academic or social standing or even level of awareness, the women in the society are subjected to total submission before their master who determines the fate of each one of them. Their submission to the tainted societal norms is seen when they begin to compete for the attention of their master so that the red lantern can be raised for them, the fact that portrays their inner acceptance to the cultural conditions despite their wide and considerable knowledge about the real world. Any of these women who try to cheat on the master is hanged and later on replaced by another. As we can see from the film, even the maid in the home accepts the structure of the society and aims at becoming one of the concubines one day. Despite the psychological torture and oppression that the concubines have been subjected to, she sees nothing wrong with the system and still fights for the attention of her master alongside her mistresses. A new comer in the camp is seemed to be loved most as the red lantern is raised for her most of the days (Su and Zhang). In this way, the new lads who join newly in the camp become the greatest enemies of the older ones as Songlian becomes. The other women fight against her while at the same time trying to win the attention of their single master. It is fascinating how; one man’s attention could be fought for by four women, all tied to him by the strict traditions and supervision. Even though he does not care what their feelings are, he does not give them away one used up, but rather abandon them in his on home, still tied to the traditions of sexual exploitation. In this paper, I will analyze the characters of the four women in the film Raise the Red Lantern, directed by Zhang Yimou as well as that of the maid. Songlian: Songlian is the fourth wife to the rich master and assumes this position right after her mission for schooling falls apart after her fathers death. It becomes hard for Songlian to climb the academic ladder she has since longed for bearing no support from her stepmother who is jealous of her. She then decides to drop her ambitions to start up anew system of life once again, far from her long time dreams which have shattered away. From the beginning, Songlian is portrayed as an ambitious young lady who makes every effort to make ends meet and work out her way amidst the many difficulties she is undergoing. She has big dreams in education and is to live a good and better educated life other fellows she sees across the society. Her dreams surpass that of the tainted societal beliefs that have rendered women backwards and ignorant of their surrounding environments, that has made women submissive to the oppressive cultural taints. While, at her masters home, Songlian applies her sharp wits to rise above her envious co- concubines to be the most preferred of all despite the envy emanating from the co- concubines, she rises above them to attain her ambitions. In the end, Songlian becomes the darling of the master, outdoing even the most beautiful of all, Meishan, who has been in the beauty industry for quite long. Her intelligence makes her prevail above the other mistresses to achieve a position of preference in her masters home. Songlian can also be said to be tactful and manipulative depending on the way she manipulates the co- concubines and step up above them. Despite there being in the homestead long enough, they are not aware of the masters points of interests to enable them make him sleep in their rooms most of the times (Hsiao). Songlian, a newcomer in the home uses the other concubines to gain access into the Shens mind. Through her tactics, she manages to manipulate the master and arrest his interests in her by feigning pregnancy. Despite the envy from the other concubines, Songian goes through all the traps set for her. Her wits and manipulative aspects makes her sail above the other women and even win the master towards her, a fact which makes her the most preferred queen of the home and earns her respect and fair treatment above all other women in the home. Meishan: Meishan is the third concubine to the rich master, a former soap opera singer and a beautiful young lad. She is portrayed as a creative and witty young lad who uses her intelligence and creativity to earn a living for herself. She sings operas for a living and seems to do well in life till her entry into the cunning and rude masters homestead where she is rendered useless and a sex machine. Meishan is patient, submissive and romantic young woman. Despite her beauty and charming physique, she is kind to the other lads, not actually employing her charming tactics to deploy the master into her bed all the days of her stay at the camp. She is kind to the other lads. Despite the enormous respect and preference she is accorded upon her arrival into the camp, she doesn’t take advantage of this preference. She is, however, deceptive and secretive as she secretly have an affair with the family doctor, Gao (Gao-yisheng, Cui Zhigang). This was a daring act that Meishan indulged herself into having the knowledge of the full repercussions of the revelation of her affairs with the doctor. She is later on hanged due to this daring deceit on her master. Zhuoyun (Zhuóyún, Cao Cuifen): This is the second mistress to and who has equally lost glamour before her master. She is a very cunning woman said to be having the face of the Buddha while at the same time possessing the heart of a scorpion. She displays not what she is and acts a Good Samaritan role to Songlian with an aim of stimulating her downfall. Her main agenda in the family is laying down traps and tricks to capitalize on their downfalls. Her mates do not like zhuoyun because of her hideous missions and plotting characteristics she employs in looking for pitfalls to bring down her mates. Zhuoyun is a determined woman who is works tooth and nail to see the success of her plots. She does not give in laying her plots until she can entangle her rival. Yuru (Jin Shuyuan): Yuru is the first wife to Shen and who holds a lot of ritualistic priorities though has long been forgotten by the master. She is portrayed as a submissive woman whose nature makes the subsequent concubines follow her roots without any complain by compromising their dignity as she has done to Shen, being the first wife in the home. Yuru seems not to be much concerned about the affairs going on in the home given her well advanced age. She submits without questions to the acts going on around her and desists from saying even a word. Even though she has all the wits to be envious and plot schemes on the younger lads as does Zhuoyun (Giskin and Bettye), she does not do this taking these other lads under her great care and nurture. She is kind, loving and caring to her children, her husband and to all the lads in the camp. Yaner: Yan’er is the personal maiden to Songlian who also has great interests in becoming one of the concubines some day. She is a very secretive, daring and intelligent young girl who employs her tactics to lure her master to bed despite being just a lowly graded servant in the home. She is very ambitious and scheming to manipulate everyone in the home. Despite the close watch the concubines keep on the master, the maids and upon one another to make sure that each is loved at the expense of the others, she manages to carry the master to bed and still plots for marriage. Her main goal for the attainment of this status is the accordance of respects and comfort as the concubines are despite the glaring adversities surrounding the affair. In conclusion, it is hard to believe the events unfolding in the film Raise the Red Lantern in the modern world. However, Zhang Yimou uses his artistic creativity to disclose these cultural taints in a respectable manner. Despite the film being rated PG and the associated romantic story behind the affairs taking place here, the film does not showcase any romantic scene apart fro the two instances where such scenes are shown behind a closed curtain. He maintains the strict and preservative Chinese cultural props while at the same time shunning their proliferation, a great irony in the film. Works Cited Fried, Ellen J., . " "Food, Sex, and Power at the Dining Room Table in Zhang Yimous Raise the Red Lantern.."" Bower, Anne, . Reel Food: Essays on Food and Film. Psychology Press, 2004. 129-143. Giskin, Howard, and S. Walsh, Bettye. An Introduction to Chinese Culture through the Family. New York: SUNY Press, 2001. Hsiao, Li-ling,. ""Dancing the Red Lantern: Zhang Yimous Fusion of Western Ballet and Peking Opera.."" Southeast Review of Asian Studies 32 (2010): 129–36. Su, Tong, and Yimou, Zhang. "Womens Places in Raise the Red Lantern"." The Cultural Politics of Modern Chinese Fiction and Film (2010). Read More