A true masterpiece of Chinese Cinema! The women characters were all victims of tradition dominated and dictated by rich and powerful males - all trapped like animals in a dog-eat -dog world ; and all within the confines of a gorgeous mansion. Beautifully acted, photographed , scored and directed. The art design, first rate. The costumes are stunning. This is my second visit, having seen this film decades ago, and it's still such a pleasure to watch. Thank you for posting.
@@hammerandthewrench7924 You EMBARASS YOURSELF. Always trolling. Always putting others down. Allow others the freedom of thought and expression. You don't have to agree. You don't have to say a word. Who are you? Nobody.
This movie won BAFTA award for best film and the national Society of Film Critics Award for Best Cinematography. Truly a great movie. This will be the 4th time watching it.
Im 21 now but how i got introduced to this movie was in 6th grade we had an amazing history teacher who when we got to this type of history she wasnt able to play us the full movie but was able to use the trailer and show us bits and pieces of the movie explaining it. It stuck in my mond so much as she encouraged us if we could find the movie somewhere to watch to do so. And after all these years i still remembered the name and plot so seeked it out and im so incredibly happy to get to watch this movie in its entirety!
Thank you very much for uploading this complete version with English subtitles. Such a profound movie. So visually beautiful. So subtle. So tragic. Thank you.
I love this film so much and I’ve watched it so often that I know the script without subtitles. Every frame is perfect and beautiful and the story is heartbreaking.
Mine too and my favorite character she plays is Hatsumomo from Memoirs of a Geisha who is a Japanese character and 2 of the people who worked on this film are Japanese as well; Naoki Tachikawa and Toshiyuki Honda.
This is more realistic than the other shows that r put on and I personally feel more of the truth and sorrow when ur looked at as a possession and not a loved one sadly. Thanks for uploading it xo
While serving as a Visiting Professor in Shanghai many years ago, I watched this film on Chinese TV, and then purchased the DVD set. Still have it, among many other Chinese movies, this is an incredibly well-made historic film that shows an accurate and intense side of Chinese culture.
@@areechonpasuwan1592 The novel has no historical prototype? Not part of humanity? Which man in China doesn’t want to be emperor? The owner in this movie is just a local emperor. Is there any difference between hanging a lantern and an emperor's flop? What is the difference between these women and the concubines in the palace? Be confident and dare to face your own culture.
I was finishing college in the 90s. For some reason, there was a lot of fine art Asian movies. Chicago had movie theaters that showed primarily fine art films. Ah, how wonderful were those days.
I have watched this film when first played in the cinema and I have never forgotten it. It was so powerful and my first meeting with this excellent director Yimou. Thank you for uploading this film and I had the opportunity to watch it again❤❤
Song Lian is a more complex character in the original novel. She was given the choice between working in a factory or getting married, she chose to marry, indicating that while she was an educated modern girl in the outside, at core she was drawn to the power and wealth of the old system…
🇫🇷 J’ai vu ce film au cinéma, j’ai le DVD et le revois encore comme la première fois. Je le vois avec une émotion intense, avec une angoisse présente qui m’étreint chaque fois. La sobriété de la mise en scène accentue l’anticipation d’une tragédie que l’on sait avoir commencé dès les premières scènes. C’est un film d’une grande intensité et d’une qualité extrême.
After watching this movie I have deepest gratitude for my life. It was heard but I did experience freedom to make my decisions. Life without freedom is absolut waist. I love my body that belongs to me as much as soul. That is power, only treasure we can find. I feel sorry for thous WHO posses others, they live in poverty. 😢
Day by day I'm learning from this amazing and controversial culture... Thank you for uploading this movie... How sad could a person feel? Alone and vulnerable... it's a mix of feelings and questions without answers... it's difficult to comment it because what was good in the past now is bad .... it depends of the context the year and the country... it's a good idea to watch it again to a better analysis...
An amazing movie ! I saw it long ago. It still evokes the same emotions in me the second time around. Thanks for posting. Please post more such great movies.
Every time I watch this, I see new nuances. This time I saw that 2nd mistress was so nice to 4th mistress, because "the enemy of my enemy is my friend". 3rd Mistress replaced 2nd mistress, and now 4th mistress will replace 3rd mistress. Every time 3rd mistress was upset, 2nd mistress was pleased. But as new mistresses kept coming, she would soon be forgotten like 1st mistress, so she really hated all of them. 1st Mistress was the bride of his youth. 2nd mistress was younger, pretty, fun, bubbly. 1st mistress could not compete with that. 3rd Mistress was a glamorous celebrity. 2nd mistress could not compete with that. 4th mistress was younger still, and "educated". 3rd Mistress could not compete with that. and 5th mistress is an inexperienced child, unaware that she has been dropped into a pool of piranhas. As 1st mistress said in the beginning: such sins. She has watched her young handsome husband turn into a selfish, lecherous, unfeeling, murderer and child molester. But she is also happy to use her power when she has the chance to destroy the other mistresses. And why should the master marry the slave? He owns all the slaves. He can have whomever he wants at any time. They are ALL nothing but property to him, even the mistresses. He has no "love" for any of them.
The word 'mistress' is an incorrect translation. The 'first/elder mistress' is actually the wife (and usually the first wife, hence older), and the only one that can normally accompany the husband to outside functions. The wife also typically needs to match his social status (coming from a family with similar social standing) and is not considered 'property' like the other concubines, which can be easily be discarded (sold, kicked out of the household or killed). All other 'mistresses' are legally married 'concubines' (not illicit mistresses in the western sense). No matter which 'mistress' is being favored, the wife is tasked with keeping the 'order' within the household and holds the power in the household. While the husband can acquire or dispose of as many 'mistresses' as he wishes (aka killing the third 'mistress'), he cannot easily get rid of his wife. Weddings are normally conducted for the marriage to the wife, and only very rarely can a concubine get a wedding, because concubines don't have the same social standing as the master of the household nor his guests. This was shown in the movie where the 4th and 5th 'mistress' entered the household without any wedding.
The servant girl watching her lanterns burn. Her dreams of being a mistress and not a servant. That the master would "love" her instead of use her. All up in flames. She would not apologize for her dreams of being with the master. She "loved" him. Yet, he was only concerned about his reputation if she died. He did not care about HER. She was nothing to him. All of those women were not people to him, but property.
I enjoyed the movie. It’s unfortunate that 4th wife never escaped from there. I thought there would be a turning point because she was so sure she would turn things into her favor.
For those who think there is nothing worse than being at the mercy of a person's WILL, doesn't this movie remind us there is something far worse--being at the mercy of a person's WHIMS?
NOP! This film has to be seen in the context of the plight of women, the expectations made on them - to be a a faithful wife, to bear children esp. afraid of a male heir, to remain a passive female suffering the follies of men.
I don't disagree with you, but we have to keep the historical power dynamics into focus. As much as the women build their own essentially courtly structures with wage war with eachother, it is ultimately the man who decides all of this. And it is his whims that are also the deciding factor. The only one who wins here is he.
I first saw this movie in my early 20s and it left such a lasting impression on me. It’s insane that there’s no Criterion Collection Blu-ray version of it. Thank you for uploading. After all these years, it’s still so hauntingly beautiful and tragic.
Is it just me? But I felt the director intentionally only focused on the female characters. I tried hard to see The master. But he was never shown in close up. It was amazing to able to see the artistic building. It felt like a small village rather than a house. I loved the veranda. The director was amazing to actually showcase major events with simplest of action. This thing is rare in modern cinema these days.
I like how the director did this, you really get a sense of the distance from the master, a reflection of the relationship of the master and his concubines.
Thank you for the upload. Though the ending is sad but it showed the reality of the women’s life at that time. N made me realise to appreciate my current life in current time and world.
@@MarianLuca-rz5kk Most men worldwide, rich or poor, eventually in a relationship, treat their woman like an object, no matter why she married him, that's just how it is. About the movie, In many countries like China women married because their family would receive money or favors. So most often girls were married or were sold to help their families. Also, like in the movie, girls were *forced* to become a concubine or a legal wife according to whomever the parents chose.
The details of the story as presented in this Movie may be a thing of the past. But the message of the story is very relevant. A patriarchal society that uses women for their selfish comforts is oppressive any time anywhere. Today only the means and methods of oppression have changed but the reality remains. A Movie for which it is worth spending two hours.
@@mallikadasiDon’t be so simple, I don’t love the torture of the characters. It’s the acting , the production..the glimpse into an unknown world. You know the things people love about cinema.
I watched this movie when I was 10! I finally re-watched it and jeeeezus!!! This is just a straight up MASTERPIECE! It was made in 1991?! Wheeewwww....it still holds up in chinese contemporary. There is a REASON why this film is in The New York Times's list of The Best 1000 Movies Ever Made coming in 209th. Still very respectable, considering how many movies were ever created lol. Great movie!
Thank you for uploading this one of my favourite movies. I watched it twice. This movie is so perfect allure and excellent background music. Anyway, even nowadays some Asian men are still treating women (even wives) as their property and not the loved ones.
It sucks being a woman sometimes lol no matter how educated this is how we are treated while men can do whatever they want and get away with it especially if they are rich and powerful. He can have so many wives but once one cheats, its the end of the world. And we have to suck it up even when they do wrong we are supposed to stay silent and act happy like we are okay.
It's interesting after 4th mistress said, "We are not people in this house, but we are treated like dogs, cats or rats". Then the maid dies and she is taken back to her grieving family. The maid was a person too. She was an ignorant, helpless little girl, trapped, just like she is.
That’s true, but the maid (rat) betrayed the 4th mistress. It wasn’t Songlians’ fault Yan er was holding onto the false promises the master gave her. That and second mistress was helping her against another rival. She was a pawn for one wife, a servant to another and a toy to the master. Songlian was right. It was better for the servant to die than to go on suffering.
15:25 I can just see a modern film maker failing to make this scene so powerful. She cries in the mirror? Okay film it, done. But this movie does it so well! She walks over, picks up a red lantern, one of the literal motifs of the movie, and stands emotionlessly in front of the mirror. She has a metaphorical mask on, one where she betrays no emotion. She has been sold off to an old rich man, violated, disrespected by the third mistress, and left alone on her “wedding night”. A single tear falls down her cheek, and her mask slips. She gives in momentarily to a moment of despair at the fate she has been dealt, and then the mask comes back on. Masks like the second wife wears, or the third mistress has in her literal house. This is such a beautiful and despairing movie.
that man had four wives but still had that maid by his side disgracing his legal wives, that man is not satisfying his wives who had nobody but that old sick man as a husband but he has all variety of age to satisfy his vicious lust for women, he fails to run his household with faithfullness what a looser a weak man, this movie is brilliant, actors did a phenomenal performance well done director, but they should have punished second wife for her sins too in the story
Yes very sad These 4 mistresses are worth nothing for this rich man..He only wants trophies and satisfy his needs and have a son, a future heir..but they are objects for him properties, nothing more .. Its sad ..They live in a gilded cage just to compete with each other and be the favorite of the master ..They have no aim for them no purpose nothing..They could have studied , read in their room and written memoirs or learnt to sing or play an instrument..
It's interesting that the 3rd mistress said the 2nd mistress has the face of Buddha, but a wicked heart. 2nd mistress seemed very kind n patient, with a smiley face, but she is a conniving witch with an evil heart. Why didn"t she get her comeuppance at all... She used other people to bring misery to her "enemy"/competitor. The naïve 4th mistress learnt her lessons too late n got manipulated by the 2nd and 3rd mistresses. None of the mistresses looked happy, the 5th one looked so scared like she was about to cry on her wedding day. Sucks to be a woman... To be trapped and hopeless 😢😢
She didn't get her 'comeuppance' because it mirrors 'real life'--people who are cunning, generally will be able to get away with things. And the cycle continues as mistress 5 will be deceived also by her, and she will have no one to warn her (she'll learn herself). And as mistress 2 grows older (less attractive), her master/husband will definitely prefer his younger concubine BUT, with age, her master/husband will prefer companionship to sex, as he may not be as spry as he used to be. And mistress 2 is excellent at being amiable and 'sweet.'
@tracys169 Isn't the best way to bring out deviousness and slyness in people to enslave them by denying them the possibility of having normal relationships which is part of leading a normal life?
Gong Li young and naive at 19. She's the smartest among the four concubine. Chinese are typically known to have mistresses outside marriage even till this days. The more sugar the plenty are the bees attracted. The maid is the key to ruins and damages so never trust them with your secrets.
It’s better to be poor than rich, at least a poor man would treat you better, his possessions are empty but his heart is full❤ On the other side, a rich man is full of possessions, but his heart is empty.
Agree to disagree. It was the poor stepmother who nagged Songlian to marry a rich man. Those who have not will always envy the haves, yet never notice the lack of happiness because they focus on the material.
@@Alusnovalotus That’s so sad, but she still had the choice to marry a normal man, and she’s the one who decided to marry a rich one. The phrase “i didn’t have a choice” doesn’t exist really, because you ALWAYS have a choice, good or bad. Songlian made her choice, and she had to face the consequences.
It is, in my opinion, sad and an awful plight of women in that period of time. Having to be one of many to marry a man they didn't have a choice in and having to compete with favors for his attention. So disappointed, this was no romantic movie. Scary
I am half way into the movie. Just curious to know what other viewers thoughts. You said it right not "romantic " at all. It's all about a rich man who can afford concubines. Not much of a creativity in the production (action wise)
Yes this is not love move, absolute tragedy, so this is very deep and artistically move ever seen, really impressed me too much, I'm 50 & saw too much films in my whole life but this is very different form at all, also compare to the time of made very post modern at all, plot or direct or cut or light or camera angle or etc... In short very amazing move but huge difference & bitter mixed truth of human life... In one word Absolutely tragic story... Tribute to this director, screen written and film at all... Tribute
This was also a time where treating your child as a product was fairly acceptable. Parents could legally sell their children.. so cultural twists on filial piety becomes a shackle on the society.
Beneath the surface, the story is actually about politics. 1991 was the year the film was made --- barely two years after the end of the domestic riots in the capital city in the summer of 1989. Go figure. I This is an excellent movie!
As a Chinese, we lived through the 1989 massacre, who also have seen the movie, honestly I failed to make the connection between the stories of house-cat-fight depicted in the movie and the political riot.
![[MULTI SUB]Full Movie《Royal Secret Love》|love|Original version without cuts|#SixStarCinema🎬](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/A9pFR34wx6c/mqdefault.jpg)
![[MULTI SUB]Full Movie《Royal Secret Love》|love|Original version without cuts|#SixStarCinema🎬](/img/tr.png)
A true masterpiece of Chinese Cinema! The women characters were all victims of tradition dominated and dictated by rich and powerful males - all trapped like animals in a dog-eat -dog world ; and all within the confines of a gorgeous mansion. Beautifully acted, photographed , scored and directed. The art design, first rate. The costumes are stunning. This is my second visit, having seen this film decades ago, and it's still such a pleasure to watch. Thank you for posting.
It’s really not that good. You’re over exaggerating yourself and it’s really embarrassing.
@@hammerandthewrench7924 it’s not good to small minds
@@hammerandthewrench7924 maybe you do not understand traditional chinese culture well.
@@hammerandthewrench7924 You EMBARASS YOURSELF. Always trolling. Always putting others down. Allow others the freedom of thought and expression. You don't have to agree. You don't have to say a word. Who are you? Nobody.
This movie won BAFTA award for best film and the national Society of Film Critics Award for Best Cinematography. Truly a great movie. This will be the 4th time watching it.
i did not know about the Bafta....well deserved
Im 21 now but how i got introduced to this movie was in 6th grade we had an amazing history teacher who when we got to this type of history she wasnt able to play us the full movie but was able to use the trailer and show us bits and pieces of the movie explaining it. It stuck in my mond so much as she encouraged us if we could find the movie somewhere to watch to do so. And after all these years i still remembered the name and plot so seeked it out and im so incredibly happy to get to watch this movie in its entirety!
Thank you very much for uploading this complete version with English subtitles. Such a profound movie. So visually beautiful. So subtle. So tragic. Thank you.
没看出受到高等教育的智 2:01:14 慧和见识，倒是勾心斗角的害人害己。无聊的很
I love this film so much and I’ve watched it so often that I know the script without subtitles. Every frame is perfect and beautiful and the story is heartbreaking.
One of my all time favourites, I still think it’s the best work from director Zhang Yimou! Brilliantly filmed and acted especially the great Gong Li.
Fine movie but so is The Road Home
@@ianoates378 I totally agree with you. I have all his films on DVDs. Love his early films!
I like this movie but I also think it's a little pompous. I liked "Ju Dou" more.
Just brilliant!
Gong Li is such a versatile and authentic actor. My all-time favorite.
Mine too and my favorite character she plays is Hatsumomo from Memoirs of a Geisha who is a Japanese character and 2 of the people who worked on this film are Japanese as well; Naoki Tachikawa and Toshiyuki Honda.
This is more realistic than the other shows that r put on and I personally feel more of the truth and sorrow when ur looked at as a possession and not a loved one sadly. Thanks for uploading it xo
While serving as a Visiting Professor in Shanghai many years ago, I watched this film on Chinese TV, and then purchased the DVD set. Still have it, among many other Chinese movies, this is an incredibly well-made historic film that shows an accurate and intense side of Chinese culture.
this movie is based on a novel, not a legend or historical.
So rich chines men in past not un like epstean and other rich Americans?
WAS THE CULTURE more than 100 years ago...
The story was artistically exaggerated n dramatized.
@@areechonpasuwan1592 The novel has no historical prototype? Not part of humanity? Which man in China doesn’t want to be emperor? The owner in this movie is just a local emperor. Is there any difference between hanging a lantern and an emperor's flop? What is the difference between these women and the concubines in the palace? Be confident and dare to face your own culture.
I was finishing college in the 90s. For some reason, there was a lot of fine art Asian movies. Chicago had movie theaters that showed primarily fine art films. Ah, how wonderful were those days.
I have watched this film when first played in the cinema and I have never forgotten it. It was so powerful and my first meeting with this excellent director Yimou. Thank you for uploading this film and I had the opportunity to watch it again❤❤
Song Lian is a more complex character in the original novel. She was given the choice between working in a factory or getting married, she chose to marry, indicating that while she was an educated modern girl in the outside, at core she was drawn to the power and wealth of the old system…
Such a great movie. So powerful.
Gong Li and He SaiFei (third mistress) are so talented.
third mistress is excellent performance
I know right and Meishan was right when she told Songlian that she shouldn't have been too hard on Yan'er.
🇫🇷 J’ai vu ce film au cinéma, j’ai le DVD et le revois encore comme la première fois. Je le vois avec une émotion intense, avec une angoisse présente qui m’étreint chaque fois. La sobriété de la mise en scène accentue l’anticipation d’une tragédie que l’on sait avoir commencé dès les premières scènes. C’est un film d’une grande intensité et d’une qualité extrême.
Marie-Christine, je suis tout a fait d'accord avec votre commentaire.
@@taravaotahiti oui ! C’est un film tout à fait remarquable. Merci pour votre aimable commentaire.
Thnx for sharing this movie
Gong li is a beautiful authentic famous actress all time favorite ❤️🌷
Hope she continues her movie making
After watching this movie I have deepest gratitude for my life. It was heard but I did experience freedom to make my decisions. Life without freedom is absolut waist. I love my body that belongs to me as much as soul. That is power, only treasure we can find. I feel sorry for thous WHO posses others, they live in poverty. 😢
The movie is beautiful and haunting at the same time.
Day by day I'm learning from this amazing and controversial culture... Thank you for uploading this movie... How sad could a person feel? Alone and vulnerable... it's a mix of feelings and questions without answers... it's difficult to comment it because what was good in the past now is bad .... it depends of the context the year and the country... it's a good idea to watch it again to a better analysis...
I watched this decades ago and still remember it clearly today. A wonderful movie, a real story, too painful to watch again.
An amazing movie ! I saw it long ago. It still evokes the same emotions in me the second time around.
Thanks for posting. Please post more such great movies.
Pls post Farewell My Concubine and all the great films of Zhang Yi M oui U and Cheng Yi (?) China's films from the 80s and 90s!
Every time I watch this, I see new nuances. This time I saw that 2nd mistress was so nice to 4th mistress, because "the enemy of my enemy is my friend". 3rd Mistress replaced 2nd mistress, and now 4th mistress will replace 3rd mistress. Every time 3rd mistress was upset, 2nd mistress was pleased. But as new mistresses kept coming, she would soon be forgotten like 1st mistress, so she really hated all of them.
1st Mistress was the bride of his youth.
2nd mistress was younger, pretty, fun, bubbly. 1st mistress could not compete with that.
3rd Mistress was a glamorous celebrity. 2nd mistress could not compete with that.
4th mistress was younger still, and "educated". 3rd Mistress could not compete with that.
and 5th mistress is an inexperienced child, unaware that she has been dropped into a pool of piranhas. As 1st mistress said in the beginning: such sins. She has watched her young handsome husband turn into a selfish, lecherous, unfeeling, murderer and child molester. But she is also happy to use her power when she has the chance to destroy the other mistresses. And why should the master marry the slave? He owns all the slaves. He can have whomever he wants at any time. They are ALL nothing but property to him, even the mistresses. He has no "love" for any of them.
The word 'mistress' is an incorrect translation. The 'first/elder mistress' is actually the wife (and usually the first wife, hence older), and the only one that can normally accompany the husband to outside functions. The wife also typically needs to match his social status (coming from a family with similar social standing) and is not considered 'property' like the other concubines, which can be easily be discarded (sold, kicked out of the household or killed). All other 'mistresses' are legally married 'concubines' (not illicit mistresses in the western sense). No matter which 'mistress' is being favored, the wife is tasked with keeping the 'order' within the household and holds the power in the household. While the husband can acquire or dispose of as many 'mistresses' as he wishes (aka killing the third 'mistress'), he cannot easily get rid of his wife. Weddings are normally conducted for the marriage to the wife, and only very rarely can a concubine get a wedding, because concubines don't have the same social standing as the master of the household nor his guests. This was shown in the movie where the 4th and 5th 'mistress' entered the household without any wedding.
The servant girl watching her lanterns burn. Her dreams of being a mistress and not a servant. That the master would "love" her instead of use her. All up in flames. She would not apologize for her dreams of being with the master. She "loved" him. Yet, he was only concerned about his reputation if she died. He did not care about HER. She was nothing to him. All of those women were not people to him, but property.
Trophy wives.
Confucianism in a nutshell.
Birds in a gilded cage.
Ver y sad 😢 dos not like it
Communist confusianism; XI Jin Ping democracy with communism characteristics.
I watched this film in the mid 90s, it left a lasting impression. They don't make them like this anymore.
I enjoyed the movie. It’s unfortunate that 4th wife never escaped from there. I thought there would be a turning point because she was so sure she would turn things into her favor.
One of the defining films of the 90's, and one of the best in world cinema. This is Yimou's masterpiece!
For those who think there is nothing worse than being at the mercy of a person's WILL, doesn't this movie remind us there is something far worse--being at the mercy of a person's WHIMS?
NOP! This film has to be seen in the context of the plight of women, the expectations made on them - to be a a faithful wife, to bear children esp. afraid of a male heir, to remain a passive female suffering the follies of men.
I don't disagree with you, but we have to keep the historical power dynamics into focus. As much as the women build their own essentially courtly structures with wage war with eachother, it is ultimately the man who decides all of this. And it is his whims that are also the deciding factor. The only one who wins here is he.
I first saw this movie in my early 20s and it left such a lasting impression on me. It’s insane that there’s no Criterion Collection Blu-ray version of it. Thank you for uploading. After all these years, it’s still so hauntingly beautiful and tragic.
Is it just me? But I felt the director intentionally only focused on the female characters. I tried hard to see The master. But he was never shown in close up.
It was amazing to able to see the artistic building. It felt like a small village rather than a house. I loved the veranda.
The director was amazing to actually showcase major events with simplest of action. This thing is rare in modern cinema these days.
That’s the point. The viewers are supposed to see the situation through the lens of the mistresses.
I like how the director did this, you really get a sense of the distance from the master, a reflection of the relationship of the master and his concubines.
Saw it years ago still remember it as it was great
One of Zhang Yi Mou's cinematic masterpieces.
One of the world's best films ever ❣️
Thank you for the upload. Though the ending is sad but it showed the reality of the women’s life at that time. N made me realise to appreciate my current life in current time and world.
There is nothing romantic about the movie but it is interesting, a sad reality for women in the past and for many in the present worldwide.
Yes, sad reality , because they sell themselves to rich men , then they say they are treated like possessions.
@@MarianLuca-rz5kk Most men worldwide, rich or poor, eventually in a relationship, treat their woman like an object, no matter why she married him, that's just how it is. About the movie, In many countries like China women married because their family would receive money or favors. So most often girls were married or were sold to help their families. Also, like in the movie, girls were *forced* to become a concubine or a legal wife according to whomever the parents chose.
There's nothing to suggest this is a romantic film!
I saw this on the big screen in SF when it came out. It still haunts me.
Her first mistake was keep Ya'ner the servant girl by her side even after knowing she is not loyal to her mistress.
this is very questionable
Saw this movie years ago really good. Gong Li is so beautiful
The details of the story as presented in this Movie may be a thing of the past. But the message of the story is very relevant. A patriarchal society that uses women for their selfish comforts is oppressive any time anywhere. Today only the means and methods of oppression have changed but the reality remains.
A Movie for which it is worth spending two hours.
The reality only remains in your delusional Marxist head space Sarah.
The architecture is amazing!
Absolutely love this movie, I watched so many times over the years 💕
why would you "love" a movie like this? Tormented ladies trying to survive in a sick household.
@@mallikadasiDon’t be so simple, I don’t love the torture of the characters. It’s the acting , the production..the glimpse into an unknown world. You know the things people love about cinema.
My favourite film. At last, I can share what I've been talking about for many years.
In what way? What part was significant to you?
A million thanks for sharing this wonderful film with us. What great story with great acting and great direction. Very powerful stuff!
No blood , no violence, no Guns, no nudity , no bad words , no special effect ,,,GREAT moovie
Perfect words... Totally agree
the violence is the lethal punishment to the third mistress, why you did not see that?
I watched this movie when I was 10! I finally re-watched it and jeeeezus!!! This is just a straight up MASTERPIECE! It was made in 1991?! Wheeewwww....it still holds up in chinese contemporary. There is a REASON why this film is in The New York Times's list of The Best 1000 Movies Ever Made coming in 209th. Still very respectable, considering how many movies were ever created lol. Great movie!
Same with me
I'd be hard pressed to name 208 films better than this one :-)
Amazing movie. It came so late in UA-cam after I watched it some 5 or more years ago.
Chinese good movies are rare in UA-cam.
I have been looking for this film for so long and here it is.! TY.
Beautiful film, absolutely amazing work in cinematography.
It's a suck movie!
This is one of my all time favorite movies!! Thanks so much 🙏🏾💓
Amazing movie. Long, long time since I saw it on the big screen. Gong Li!!!!!!!
This is why women must be empowered
A tragic ending. Visually perfect
I like this movie and rewatched it several time. Thanks for sharing
Thank you for uploading this one of my favourite movies. I watched it twice. This movie is so perfect allure and excellent background music. Anyway, even nowadays some Asian men are still treating women (even wives) as their property and not the loved ones.
This is among top 100 movies in the last century
Thank you for uploading this movie, i was searching for a long time, i viewed that movie in the 1992.
the music is soo candid , sounds almost like indian music over here in mountain regions and rural areas of orissa and chhattisgarh.
Thank you for this wonderful drama and blessings for the english subtitles 👍🙏
Wow. Amazingly beautiful and haunting film!
I saw the movie in 1993 for the first time at a film festival in college in Malaysia, just realized that’s 30 years ago. 😂
Wow that's amazing, Im watching this right now as a part of my Chinese Cinema class in college 31 years later! Good day to you my friend!
@youknowkbbabyAs someone who have lived in both the U.S. and Malaysia, I live a much better quality of life and pays a lot less taxes in Malaysia. 😂
💖 excellent! I saw this over 20 years ago... It's still good! 💖
Such a fine director. I also enjoyed The Road Home
Beautiful movie..just sad ending.
It sucks being a woman sometimes lol no matter how educated this is how we are treated while men can do whatever they want and get away with it especially if they are rich and powerful. He can have so many wives but once one cheats, its the end of the world. And we have to suck it up even when they do wrong we are supposed to stay silent and act happy like we are okay.
I think you’re stuck in the Middle Ages hun 🙄
It's interesting after 4th mistress said, "We are not people in this house, but we are treated like dogs, cats or rats". Then the maid dies and she is taken back to her grieving family. The maid was a person too. She was an ignorant, helpless little girl, trapped, just like she is.
That’s true, but the maid (rat) betrayed the 4th mistress. It wasn’t Songlians’ fault Yan er was holding onto the false promises the master gave her. That and second mistress was helping her against another rival.
She was a pawn for one wife, a servant to another and a toy to the master. Songlian was right. It was better for the servant to die than to go on suffering.
If a good system brings out the best in people, doesn't a bad system bring out the worst?
What a start😮 it's just like a funeral not a wedding.
15:25 I can just see a modern film maker failing to make this scene so powerful. She cries in the mirror? Okay film it, done.
But this movie does it so well! She walks over, picks up a red lantern, one of the literal motifs of the movie, and stands emotionlessly in front of the mirror. She has a metaphorical mask on, one where she betrays no emotion. She has been sold off to an old rich man, violated, disrespected by the third mistress, and left alone on her “wedding night”. A single tear falls down her cheek, and her mask slips. She gives in momentarily to a moment of despair at the fate she has been dealt, and then the mask comes back on.
Masks like the second wife wears, or the third mistress has in her literal house. This is such a beautiful and despairing movie.
Epouses et Concubines sortie en France en 1991, je me souviens. Je vais le regarder avec les sous-titres en anglais.
Merci pour le partage.
🫰💐
that man had four wives but still had that maid by his side disgracing his legal wives, that man is not satisfying his wives who had nobody but that old sick man as a husband but he has all variety of age to satisfy his vicious lust for women, he fails to run his household with faithfullness what a looser a weak man, this movie is brilliant, actors did a phenomenal performance well done director, but they should have punished second wife for her sins too in the story
Different type of movie that most would watch but it’s good. Read the comments and you’ll see that not much have changed😢
I saw this years ago. It was amazing.
Masterpiece, unforgettable.
a westerner sees all the striking visuals and sounds, a Chinese sees a party line critique of ossified feudal remnants. A neat balancing act
can admin pl upload other gong li movies. this has been repeated many times. tq
An excellent movie, so galvanising
This movie is excellent ❤
Magnificent movie! Very sad too🥲🥲🥲
Yes very sad These 4 mistresses are worth nothing for this rich man..He only wants trophies and satisfy his needs and have a son, a future heir..but they are objects for him properties, nothing more .. Its sad ..They live in a gilded cage just to compete with each other and be the favorite of the master ..They have no aim for them no purpose nothing..They could have studied , read in their room and written memoirs or learnt to sing or play an instrument..
I am giving this a 10 + rating
Masterpiece.
This is masterpiece 👏👏👏
It's interesting that the 3rd mistress said the 2nd mistress has the face of Buddha, but a wicked heart. 2nd mistress seemed very kind n patient, with a smiley face, but she is a conniving witch with an evil heart. Why didn"t she get her comeuppance at all... She used other people to bring misery to her "enemy"/competitor. The naïve 4th mistress learnt her lessons too late n got manipulated by the 2nd and 3rd mistresses. None of the mistresses looked happy, the 5th one looked so scared like she was about to cry on her wedding day. Sucks to be a woman... To be trapped and hopeless 😢😢
She didn't get her 'comeuppance' because it mirrors 'real life'--people who are cunning, generally will be able to get away with things. And the cycle continues as mistress 5 will be deceived also by her, and she will have no one to warn her (she'll learn herself). And as mistress 2 grows older (less attractive), her master/husband will definitely prefer his younger concubine BUT, with age, her master/husband will prefer companionship to sex, as he may not be as spry as he used to be. And mistress 2 is excellent at being amiable and 'sweet.'
@tracys169 Isn't the best way to bring out deviousness and slyness in people to enslave them by denying them the possibility of having normal relationships which is part of leading a normal life?
Tqvm fr sharing this movie. Gong Li❤
Gong Li young and naive at 19. She's the smartest among the four concubine. Chinese are typically known to have mistresses outside marriage even till this days. The more sugar the plenty are the bees attracted. The maid is the key to ruins and damages so never trust them with your secrets.
It’s better to be poor than rich, at least a poor man would treat you better, his possessions are empty but his heart is full❤
On the other side, a rich man is full of possessions, but his heart is empty.
Agree to disagree.
It was the poor stepmother who nagged Songlian to marry a rich man. Those who have not will always envy the haves, yet never notice the lack of happiness because they focus on the material.
Could prosperity serve to dehumanize people by making them view other people as property?
@@youtuber5305 yes and no. China went through that stage during the communist revolution and ended up right back where it started.
@@Alusnovalotus
That’s so sad, but she still had the choice to marry a normal man, and she’s the one who decided to marry a rich one.
The phrase “i didn’t have a choice” doesn’t exist really, because you ALWAYS have a choice, good or bad.
Songlian made her choice, and she had to face the consequences.
Don't stepmothers have a bad reputation in Chinese society?
Gong Li ~ The Worlds Most Beautiful and Talented Actress
well that was depressing. very well done and worht the watch
Excellent movie.
I wish this movie could just end i am half way through its to painful to watch anymore💔
It's so beautiful movie
So special movie👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
This is pure "Art" ..
I have nothing to add
Thank you!❤
Good quality movie.
this is a great movie
It is, in my opinion, sad and an awful plight of women in that period of time. Having to be one of many to marry a man they didn't have a choice in and having to compete with favors for his attention. So disappointed, this was no romantic movie. Scary
I am half way into the movie. Just curious to know what other viewers thoughts. You said it right not "romantic " at all. It's all about a rich man who can afford concubines. Not much of a creativity in the production (action wise)
Yes this is not love move, absolute tragedy, so this is very deep and artistically move ever seen, really impressed me too much, I'm 50 & saw too much films in my whole life but this is very different form at all, also compare to the time of made very post modern at all, plot or direct or cut or light or camera angle or etc... In short very amazing move but huge difference & bitter mixed truth of human life... In one word Absolutely tragic story... Tribute to this director, screen written and film at all... Tribute
Terrible movie. I waisted my time watching it hoping a better ending outcome for the 4th mistress. Aloha! Oahu, Hawaii USA
This was also a time where treating your child as a product was fairly acceptable. Parents could legally sell their children.. so cultural twists on filial piety becomes a shackle on the society.
Not a Romance movie, but a Traggic one. Oahu, Hawaii USA
I think we all amuse ourselves to keep on living.
Could this Winston Churchill quote also apply to customs?: "We shape our buildings and afterward our buildings shape us."
Beneath the surface, the story is actually about politics. 1991 was the year the film was made --- barely two years after the end of the domestic riots in the capital city in the summer of 1989. Go figure. I
This is an excellent movie!
I don't think so.
As a Chinese, we lived through the 1989 massacre, who also have seen the movie, honestly I failed to make the connection between the stories of house-cat-fight depicted in the movie and the political riot.
There was No Massacre.
The 4 wives of different generations in the house represent the party members of different generations in the Party.
This movie is mentioned in the 2022 article "Movies Which Explore the Consequences Borne by People Removed From Traditional Group Norms".
NONSENSICAL!
The moral of the story: don't get drunk, alcohol can make you do things that you regret later.
Good movie😊
Maybe this is the true story longtime ago about Chinese b4, Sad