Jasmine Women
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| Jasmine Women (Mo li hua kai) | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Hou Yong |
| Starring | Zhang Ziyi Joan Chen Jiang Wen Lu Yi Liu Ye |
| Music by | Song Cong |
| Release date(s) | February 9, 2005 (China) |
| Country | China |
| Language | Mandarin Chinese and Shanghainese |
Jasmine Women (Simplified Chinese: 茉莉花开; Traditional Chinese: 茉莉花開; pinyin: Mò li huā kāi; literally ""Blooming Jasmine"") is a 2004 film, adapted from Su Tong's novel called Funu Shenghuo which means The Lives of Women. It is directed by Hou Yong the well known cinematographer. Zhang Ziyi plays the youngest of three generations of women who leads lives in Shanghai. Joan Chen plays the great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother. The film recounts this family, the mistakes they make, and a cycle that the granddaughter breaks out of. The film was very well received by critics and was praised for its use of color and the performances of Ziyi Zhang and Joan Chen.
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[edit] Plot
[edit] Mo's Story (1930's)
18 year old Mo (Zhang Ziyi) lives with her mother (Chen Chong (Joan)) who owns a small photo shop. She wanted to be a movie star, a dream her mother does not understand. One day, Mo meets Mr. Meng (Jiang Wen), manager of a movie studio. She leaves to become a movie star and leaves her mother. She enters a relationship with Mr. Meng and becomes pregnant with Meng's baby. She refuses to have an abortion so when the Japanese invades China during WWII, Meng leaves Shanghai leaves forever. The movie studio is shut down and Mo returns home. She gives birth to Li and blamed her for everything she had lost. She then sleeps with her mother's new boyfriend which causes her mother to committ suicide.
[edit] Li's Story (1950's)
Li (played by Zhang Ziyi) had grown up with her mother (now played by Chen Chong (Joan)) with great misery. Mo continuously talks about her dream of being a movie star. She married Zou Jie (Lu Yi) who was the head of her high school's Communist Party. They move into Jie's home but unused to their lifestyle and unable to bear a child of her own, they move back with Mo. Li adopted a baby girl named Hua. Day by day, Li had become more and more paranoid and even accused Zou for violating Hua. Li’s own family collapsed and Zou committs suicide on a train track. Li leaves her home; her fate is unknown.
[edit] Hua’s Story (1980’s)
Li disappeared when Hua (Zhang Ziyi) was still very young and she has grown up with her grandmother Mo (Chen Chong (Joan)). Mo treated her own daughter very badly but found comfort on taking care of her granddaughter. Hua’s husband Du (Liu Ye) was not happy with his wife and had an affair with another woman. Hua decided to end the marriage even though she had already carried Du’s child. Mo encourages her to abort the baby but Hua decides against it just like her grandmother. However before she can get home, her grandmother has died. Years later, Du has come back to Hua but she has moved on with her life. She moves into a new home with resolve to change her family's destiny and raise her daughter.
[edit] Notes
The movie was completed in 2004 but due to post-production difficulty, it was delayed until 2005.
The Chinese name of the movie Mo li hua kai is based on a popular Chinese song which means Jasmine Flower Blossom. It was sung at the Closing Cermonies of the Athens Olympics.
The names of the characters in the movie are based on this song.
[edit] Awards
7th Shanghai International Film Festival Grand Jury Prize (2004)
Best Actress at the 13th Golden Rooster Awards of China (Ziyi Zhang)
[edit] External links
| Films by Jiang Wen |
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| Acted in: The Last Empress (1986) • Hibiscus Town (1986) • Tears of the Bridal Sedan (1987) • Red Sorghum (1987) • Black Snow (1990) • Li Lianying: The Imperial Eunuch (1991) • The Trail (1993) • In the Heat of the Sun (1994) • The Emperor's Shadow (1996) • Keep Cool (1997) • The Soong Sisters (1997) • Devils on the Doorstep (2000) • The Missing Gun (2002) • Green Tea (2003) • My Father and I (2003) • Warriors of Heaven and Earth (2003) • Jasmine Women (2004) • A Letter from an Unknown Woman (2004) • The Sun Also Rises (2007)
Directed: In the Heat of the Sun (1994) • Devils on the Doorstep (2000) • The Sun Also Rises (2007) |
 Cinema of China |
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