Chinese Films in Focus: 25 New Takes

by Chris Berry, Jason McGrath (Contributor)

The Chinese cinemas--including mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong--have been the most internationally popular and successful non-Western cinemas for almost two decades now. In recent years, they have generated a vigorous and thriving field of interpretation and criticism. Chinese Films in 25 New Takes is an anthology of 25 fresh and original readings of individual Chinese films. Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the diaspora are all included, and historical coverage ranges from the 1930s to the present. Film titles covered include Farewell My Concubine, Chungking Express, Flowers of Shanghai, The Goddess, Bullet in the Head, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Crows and Sparrows, Yi Yi, and many more. As well as globally famous films, the anthology also introduces a number of Chinese classics that are less well known internationally and deserve more attention.
The essays are concise, accessible, rich, and on the cutting edge of current research. Each one outlines existing writing on the film, and then presents an original perspective. All are designed for classroom use, scholarly research, and to appeal to the general reader with an interest in Chinese film.

Genres: Film

224 pages, Paperback

First published November 17, 2003

About the author

Chris Berry is the Professor of Film and Television Studies in the Department of Media and Communication at Goldsmiths, University of London. In the 1980s, he worked for China Film Import and Export Corporation in Beijing, and his academic research is grounded in work on Chinese cinema and other Chinese screen-based media, as well as neighboring countries. He is especially interested in queer screen cultures in East Asia; mediatized public space in East Asian cities; and national and transnational screen cultures in East Asia.

Reviews

[Jerjonji · Rating 4 out of 5]

A scholastic study on one of my passions- Chinese films. I'm reading this book slowly and am trying to watch each film as I read the essay about it. That isn't always possible, and my list of must-own films is growing- but I love looking at them from a scholarly point of view- even if at times it seems like the writer is over-thinking the movie, or missing the point in their eagerness to compare it to Freud's thought process.