Essay writing, free sample essay topics, research papers

You are welcome to search the collection of free essays and term papers. Thousands of essay topics are available. Order unique, original custom papers from our essay writing service.

Sample essay topic, essay writing: Red Sorghum - 2014 words

NOTE: Essay you see on this page is free essay, available to anyone. We strongly do not recommend using any direct quotes from these essays for credit - you will most probably be caught for copying/pasting off the Internet, as it is very easy to trace where the essay has been taken from by a plagiarism detection program. You are welcome to use these samples for your research, but if you want to be sure that your essay is 100% original and one of a kind, we highly recommend to order a custom essay from us.

WHEN Zhang Yimou made his directorial debut, Zhang Yimou made his directorial debut, Red Sorghum, in 1987, he was better known as a cinematographer whose talent had been crucial to the success of critically acclaimed films like Zhang Junzhao's One and Eight (1984, released 1987) and Chen Kaige's Yellow Earth (1984). Not only did Red Sorghum become a seminal film of the Fifth Generation, it also won the Golden Bear at Berlin in 1988, becoming the first mainland Chinese film ever to be awarded the highest honour at a major international film competition. Set in the 1920s and '30s in northern China, Red Sorghum's narrative centres on the fate of a young woman who is forced to marry a rich old leper but who eventually falls in love with a younger man. The motif of female oppression in feudal China is repeated in Zhang's next two films, Ju Dou (1990) and Raise the Red Lantern (1991). The films form a loose triptych, linked not only by similar thematic concerns but also stylistic elements.

The latter include the luscious use of colour, lighting and bold composition to create the sensuous images and metaphors which have distinguished Zhang as an original auteur. Equally prominent are the silences and spare dialogue; music and sound are used with precision -- nothing extraneous is added. This article focuses on how visual and aural components in Red Sorghum are employed to enhance the dramatic aspect of the narrative as well as to convey philosophical and metaphoric meaning.RED SORGHUM is narrated as much through its storyline as by its splendid images and aural qualities. The film is photographed by Gu Changwei (who also shot Chen Kaige's (Farewell, My Concubine) in Cinemascope; the music is composed by Zhao Jiping, who has since composed the rest of the music scores for Zhang's films. The opening sequence establishes the vibrant mood and mythical atmosphere of the film and introduces the themes of passion and freedom through powerful imagery and music. It also establishes Zhang Yimou as a visual sensualist

Order custom essays brand-new and 100% original, tailored to your needs, price quote

In a deserted setting comprising mainly sand and stone, a strain of wedding music grows progressively louder. A traditional red sedan chair carried by a group of shirtless men, followed closely by a retinue of trumpeters and drummers, enliven the harsh landscape. Inside the covered sedan chair, the pretty face of a young bride is cast in crimson shadow. The twenty-two year-old Gong Li projects a charismatic blend of sensuality and rebellion in her acting debut as Nine (Jiu), qualities that will characterize her imminent roles in Zhang's next two films. Gong Li, who has since become China's most well-known female star, confesses that she can easily identify with the headstrong Nine: 'Jiu dares to act and take responsibility for her actions; she dares to love and hate.

She is fearless. I think our temperaments are similar. I was interested in the role and was confident I could play it well.'(1) In this scene, Nine's impassive features reveal a hint of defiance and a touch of boredom as she sits in brooding silence. Parting the red curtain before her ever so slightly, she seems to be mesmerised by the sight of the bare, muscular back belonging to one of the sedan carriers whom we later know as Yu, the narrator's grandfather (played with finesse by Jiang Wen). The seemingly innocuous image of sexual curiosity provides the first suggestion of Nine's eroticism. The sedan chair carriers, all earthy and muscular peasants, tease Nine about her impending fate as the wife of Big Head Li, their leprous boss. Nine, too proud to reply to their jibing, obstinately remains silent.

Wishing to break down her reserve and at the same time acting in accordance with the local custom, the men jolt the wedding sedan chair and make fun of the bride in a raucous song. As they sing and dance in synchronized steps with clouds of sand and dust flying around them, the revellers create a mythical image of solidarity, freedom and vitality. However, in ironical contrast to the genteel convention of beautiful women being serenaded by handsome admirers, the lyrics sung by the peasant sedan chair carriers are rudely humorous: Look closely -- pitted pockmarks A squashed nose and piggy, piggy eyes A chicken neck, an ugly face A head crawling with lots and lots of lice..(2) The lively, noisy scene carries implicit eroticism, suggested by the naked torsos of the men, the curiosity of a virginal bride, and the rhythmic movements caused by the jolting of the sedan chair. The tossing action effectively evokes the men's projection of their subconscious desire for the bride.(3) The scene is also a superb example of how tension is created through contrast. As the men sing their boisterous eulogy with gusto, Nine struggles to control her sobs and retching.

The bright daylight in which the sedan carriers careen is interpolated with the dark interior of the wedding sedan chair which serves as the prison bearing Nine to her unfortunate fate. Crying and trying to steady herself in the sedan, Nine picks up a pair of wire scissors from the floor taken from her father's home and hides it inside her wedding outfit. The close-up of Nine's embroidered red shoe stepping on the pair of black scissors and her trembling hand reaching down for it is an eloquent image of her character which is capable of intense passion and hatred. Finally, her sobbing is noticed by one of the men and the jolting and singing cease. By this time, the procession, which was so jolly a few moments ago, now move silently through the dreaded fields of tall wild sorghum known as Qingsha Kou (Murderer's Gulch), warily eyeing the thick wild plants which are rumoured to be inhabited by ghosts. At this point, the background score plays the eerie sounds which every viewer of Chinese haunted movies recognises -- the mournful reverberation of Chinese gongs amidst the chirping of crickets that precedes the appearance of the ghost.

However, even more vicious than ghosts is a masked bandit who suddenly holds up the procession and strips the men off their money on the pretext that he is the infamous local gangster, Sanpao. As expected, the bandit moves curiously towards the sedan chair to see the hidden bride. Upon pulling off her red bridal veil, he sees Nine observing him calmly. Entranced by her beauty, he reaches down to hold her foot encased in a red embroidered shoe. Looking at the masked bandit, Nine's face registers understanding of her power over him; at this moment, he is the conquered and she the conqueror.

As if amused by the thought, Nine breaks into a sudden smile, revealing a flash of white teeth. Taken aback by the bride's unexpected boldness, the bandit orders her out of the sedan and into the thick sorghum plantation where his intention is obvious. The cool compliance of Nine reveals her dauntless confidence. As she walks leisurely into the sorghum, she turns towards Yu who is forced to crouch beside the sedan chair with the other men, and looks challengingly at him to rescue her. Making her way slowly into the tall sorghum, she pauses and looks at Yu again.

Heeding Nine's plea, Yu lunges at the bandit, and the other sedan chair carriers follow suit. The bandit is beaten to death and the men discover that he is only an imposter of Sanpao. All this while, not a word has been exchanged between Nine and Yu, but their mutual attraction, conveyed by the exchange of desiring glances, is unmistakable. Seated calmly again in the bridal sedan, Nine gazes at the enraptured Yu before she abruptly lets the sedan's red curtain fall before her. Throughout this sequence red is given prominence as a symbol of passion and sexual desire.

In one of Zhang's first utilisation of repetition, Yu, like the murdered bandit, moves towards the sedan chair and grabs hold of Nine's foot protruding slightly under the curtain. In a reversal of roles, Nine is now the one who is startled by this bold gesture of desire as she withdraws her foot into the sedan, her own feelings aroused. On Nine's nuptial night, she presumably protects herself from Big Head Li's advances with her scissors. The assumption is implied rather than stated through a series of evocative images. The scene begins with the image of a terrified Nine in her red wedding dress, crouched in a corner of the room clutching the pair of black scissors to her chest.

Beside her is a pile of red wedding quilts lit by the glow of two oil lamps. The rustling of bedsheets in another corner of the room indicates the presence of her husband, whom the audience never sees. This is followed by a serene image of the moon shining above the distillery's distinctive landscape -- a rock formation in the shape of an arch perched high on the dusty hill which marks the entrance to the premises of the distillery. For the night scenes which are shot outdoors, Zhang uses blue filters to evoke a fairytale landscape. In this image, the blue filter is in sharp contrast to the red imagery of the previous shot, endowing the landscape with a mythical quality and an atmosphere of quiet and lyrical melancholy. The next image shifts to the dark interior of the distillery workers' room.

The men are asleep except for Luohan who is still awake and smoking a water pipe. The gurgling of the water in the pipe is the only sound that can be heard in the house. Suddenly, from another room, a woman's scream pierces the quiet night, startling the men from their sleep. It takes only a moment for them to identify the cause of the scream; unable to do anything to protect Nine from the leper's conjugal right, the men return to slumber. Sitting at a table, Luohan reflects in silence before extinguishing the night lamp. In this short scene, nothing appears to have happened, yet the atmosphere is heavy with unspoken tragedy and resignation.

Zhang's use of sunlight in the film is also significant. For example, as Nine defiantly prods the mule into a canter in order to escape her father's censuring, the camera captures her literally riding into the brilliant orb on the horizon. Not only does the image capture Nine's strength of character, it also enhances the mythical nature of both the narrative and Nine's character. Indeed, the main characters are often shot against the sun, the blinding light bestowing upon them an aura of vibrancy. One of the most memorable scenes in the film occurs during Nine's journey to visit her father's house three days after her wedding.

Passing through Qingsha Kou, Nine seems to hear strange movements amidst the rustling of the sorghum leaves in the strong breeze. Suddenly, from among the sorghum, a masked man appears and abducts her into the plantation. Here begins the breathtaking use of the camera to create suspense, excitement and urgency. As the masked stranger snatches Nine from the mule, he carries her in an unexpectedly primitive manner -- horizontally under his arm -- as if she were no more than a writhing bundle of fabric. The camera pursues the two, only to be met with thick sorghum plants closing behind them like verdant curtains. Their movement amidst the greenery is revealed by a high angled shot showing flashes of red belonging to Nine's outfit. The audience is made to identify with Nine's perspective through a subjective shot as a hand-held camera shows sorghum plants being hastily parted.

The camera then tracks parallel to the action, capturing a flurry of movement and blurred faces. It then follows behind the couple as they fall to the ground. In desperation, Nine tries to run away, pushing the sorghum aside as the abductor chases after her. Pausing for a moment's respite after bolting around in confusion, Nine is suddenly confronted by the masked man whom the viewer now strongly suspects to be Yu. Gazing at Nine, the man pulls off his mask, confirming our ...

Research paper and essay writing, free essay topics, sample works Red Sorghum

Top

Essay help, free essay samples:

American History X, Cassandra As A Tragic Figure, Code Of Hummuraby, Breif Explination Of Characters And Themes Of Catcher In The Rye, Healing Health Care, Comparing Iraq Constitution To Our Own, Personhood, The Notebook, Lord Of The Flie, Lives Of Saints: Christinas Strength In Resisting Societys Demands, Heineken Out Of Burma, Christian Worldview And Multiculturalism, Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus, Castles, Chanel, Macbeth Literary Essay, and much more...