Home Articles Abstract
Research Article

Cultural Revolution in 21C Chinese Cinema

Young Hee Goh

서강대학교 동아연구소

Published: January 2012 · Vol. 62, No. 0 · pp. 199-228

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33334/sieas.2012.31.1.199

Full Text

Abstract

Most of the famous films on Cultural Revolution from 1980s to 1990s covered or criticized the Revolution focusing on the hardships of an individual or the people. However, Cultural Revolution is now conveyed in many new perspectives for following reasons : deepening corruption following China`s reform and opening of the market; people`s counter-memory that is different from the government`s dominant-memory; and commercialization of Chinese film industry. Starting from 2000s there are growing number of films that de-emphasizes political aspect of the cultural revolution. Representative cases include 「Peacock(孔雀, 2004)」, 「The Road(芳香之旅, 2006)」, 「Under the Hawthorn Tree(山사樹之戀, 2010). This paper aims to find out why the films on Cultural Revolution are "ahistorical," refusing to be placed as part of the history due to their relationship with the society, the market, and national attempt to censor films. I will categorizing external factors into three: (1) dominant-memory and counter-memory, (2) China`s nostalgia for socialism and consumer culture, and (3) films on Cultural Revolution and censorship. By analyzing the text, I am going to review the characteristic of Chinas` nostalgia for socialism that these three films are trying to show. Through this text analysis, I hope to analyze why current chinese films on the Cultural Revolution have become apolitical.
Keywords: 문혁 영화대항기억사회주의 노스탤지어소비문화검열