Raise the Red Lantern

1991, Drama, 2h 5m

28 Reviews 10,000+ Ratings

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critics consensus

Visually thrilling and rich with emotion, Raise the Red Lantern offers an engrossing period drama anchored by an outstanding performance from Gong Li. Read critic reviews

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Raise the Red Lantern Photos

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Movie Info

Teenage Songlian (Gong Li), whose family has been devastated by the recent death of her father, becomes the third concubine of wealthy Master Chen (Ma Jingwu). She soon discovers that behind the palatial luxury of life in the master's house, she and her fellow concubines, Zhuoyan (Cao Cuifeng) and Meishan (He Caifei), are pitted against each other in a struggle for his affections. The situation inevitably leads to deception, jealous rages and the revelation of each other's darkest secrets.
  • Rating:
    PG
  • Genre:
    Drama
  • Original Language:
    Chinese
  • Director:
    Yimou Zhang
  • Producer:
    Fu-Sheng Chiu
  • Writer:
    Su Tong, Ni Zhen
  • Release Date (Theaters):
     original
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Box Office (Gross USA):
    $22.6K
  • Runtime:
  • Distributor:
    Orion Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
  • Sound Mix:
    Surround, Dolby

Cast & Crew

Gong Li
Songlian
Ma Jingwu
The Master
Saifei He
Meishan (Third Wife)
Cao Cuifeng
Zhuoyan (Second Wife)
Jin Shuyuan
Yuru
Kong Lin
Yan'er
Ding Weimin
Songlian's mother
Cui Zhihgang
Dr. Gao
Yimou Zhang
Director
Su Tong
Writer
Ni Zhen
Writer
Fu-Sheng Chiu
Producer
Hsiao-hsien Hou
Executive Producer
Wenze Zhang
Executive Producer
Naoki Tachikawa
Original Music
Jiping Zhao
Original Music
Fei Zhao
Cinematography
Lun Yang
Cinematography
Yuan Du
Film Editing
Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for Raise the Red Lantern

All Critics (28) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (27) | Rotten (1)
Full Review… Rob Nelson Village Voice Full Review… Janet Maslin New York Times Full Review… Peter Travers Rolling Stone Full Review… Hal Hinson Washington Post Full Review… John Hartl Film.com Full Review… Marjorie Baumgarten Austin Chronicle Full Review… Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review Full Review… Tom Meek Cambridge Day Full Review… Malcolm Johnson Hartford Courant Full Review… Amber Wilkinson Eye for Film Full Review… Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Full Review… Betsy Bozdech DVDJournal.com
View All Critic Reviews (28)

Audience Reviews for Raise the Red Lantern

  • Apr 10, 2022
    It starts off as melodrama but ends like a horror movie. Love the shooting location which is like a claustrophobic labyrinth.
    Alec B Super Reviewer
  • Feb 23, 2016
    A film of sheer formal beauty, with a gorgeous cinematography and a gripping allegoric story about the subjection of women in a patriarchal society, but it is infuriating how it collapses in its last forty minutes, turning into a melodramatic soap opera with a terrible ending.
    Carlos M Super Reviewer
  • Jul 04, 2012
    I guess this is where it all took off for Zhang Yimou and what a take off this was. This is visually stunning and with a genuine heart felt storyline.
    John B Super Reviewer
  • May 17, 2012
    A fantastic film about expectations and societal roles. Director Zhang Yimou exhaustively captures the pomp and circumstance of every tradition, beautifully juxtaposing this grandeur with the desperate plight of the concubines. He shows that under all the bizarre foot massages and the ceremonial lighting of the lanterns, there is a group woman eagerly laying in wait for the master to come and bestow upon them his light. Confined to grounds of this temple, or what seems like a very small prison, he captures both the elegance and the crippling confinement that these women call home. Even in this isolated & relatively small space, Yimou makes the stakes feel so high. For me it was an unexpected delight and a film I will not soon forget.
    Reid V Super Reviewer
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