Huang tu di (Yellow Earth)

This 1984 gem about a communist soldier sent to a remote rural community in China to compile local folk songs is a film you will not shake easily. Haunting in both it's vision and sound HUANG TU DI was a success in art houses throughout the world. Rich in metaphor and presented in a lusciously stark fashion it manages to show both the beauty and the hardships of the desperate poor and though it seems to be on the surface a simple film attacking the effectiveness of communism I honestly feel it was more of a statement on the great despair of life in general. Directed and adapted by Kaige Chen who also gave us FAREWELL MY CONCUBINE make sure to watch this one whilst headache or hangover free as the Chinese style of singing, while beautiful at times, can be mighty hard on the ears.