Xinghua san yue tian (1993) User Reviews

Not quite satisfying

[Julie-21 · 7/10 · 24 February 2000]

The characters are engaging, the actors are outstanding, the scenery is breathtaking, and the story is engrossing. There's just one problem: the ending. I think it's open to interpretation, and it's hard to be sure of what happens when the movie's over.

Also, certain plot points don't seem to add up right; I can't give details without giving spoilers, and I may have misunderstood something (sometimes subtitles can be confusing), but at one point I wasn't sure whether Xinghua was telling the truth (meaning that much more time passed between scenes than I had thought), knowingly lying, or just bluffing to anger her husband.

Overall, however, it's an enjoyable film, and quite different for those who don't know a lot about modern rural China. I recommend this movie if you're curious about rural China; however, some familiarity with certain Chinese customs would probably be a big help.

Picturesque but maudlin.

[gdlindberg · 6/10 · 3 July 2000]

The picture of rural life in Northwestern China makes this movie. The plot line, with the evil husband and the victim wife with a heart of gold is pretty maudlin. The English in the subtitles is stilted - would anyone voluntarily write English like that in a screen play?

Bittersweet

[Sailrv · 4/10 · 10 October 1999]

I found this film to be a bit too depressing. I don't mind dramas, but this was a bit too much for me. Luckily, there does seem to be somewhat a decent outcome. I suppose it was well done. I'd watch it again, but it's nothing to rave about.

Breaking Out is Hard to Do

[mrpentax · 8/10 · 11 October 1999]

A study in the seemingly rank unfairness of Chinese culture toward women, this is an excellent film. Our heroine has a particularly raw deal, matched (or more correctly, purchase by) to a cruel, but well off husband. His only interest is to have a son, but Xinghua does not become pregnant, bringing great hardship on herself. I liked the movie, although it was a little long and some of the characters could have been developed more, like Nizi, the husband's sister. If you accept the movie as a real depiction of life in rural China, it is a wonderful, but depressing view of the Chinese twist to life's complications. Try it. You'll like it.

Solid but not noteworthy ***SPOILER***

[howardross · 8/10 · 15 June 2000]

The acting was good but the script developed limited aspects of the characters. Xinghua obviously is pregnant by her brother in law because she's shown to be sick a couple times. At the end she seems to be leaving to be with her brother in law because she's headed for his grove of trees and her husband has died chasing his greed - but I had some doubt because the brother in law had been unreliable in the past and she may not have forgiven him. Also the film did not have the beautiful cinematography that some of the better known Chinese films have.