Raise the Red Lantern
A young bride enters a wealthy Chinese household where red lanterns illuminate a merciless contest for patriarchal favor.
Overview
A young woman's struggle for power and recognition unfolds in a world of rivalry and intrigue.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- austere
- oppressive
- melancholic
- serious film night
- world cinema evening
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a landmark period drama distinguished by its breathtaking visual composition, emotional force, and Gong Li's performance.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The lantern-lighting ceremony determines status, access, and competition among the wives.
The wives live in separate houses within an enclosed family compound whose layout reinforces isolation and rank.
Songlian and the other wives scheme against one another because the husband's favor controls power and privilege.
Rich fabrics, architecture, and lanterns contrast with the wives' lack of autonomy and the household's punitive rules.
Films like Raise the Red Lantern, and why
The Story of Qiu Ju
shares an austere period setting, patriarchal social hierarchy, female confinement, and psychologically intense domestic intrigue
To Live
shares Zhang Yimou's meticulously composed visual style, oppressive social systems, and emotionally restrained historical drama
The Handmaiden
shares a claustrophobic female-centered period drama, marital power struggles, and suffocating patriarchal customs
Movie Details
- Director
- Zhang Yimou
- Release Date
- 1991-12-18
- Runtime
- 125 min
- Rating
- 7.9 / 10 (803)
Cast
- Gong Li
- He Saifei
- Cao Cuifen
- Kong Lin
- Zhao Qi
- Jin Shuyuan
- Ma Jingwu
- Cui Zhigang
- Chu Xiao
- Cao Zengyin
Common questions
- What is Raise the Red Lantern about?
- A young bride enters a wealthy Chinese household where red lanterns illuminate a merciless contest for patriarchal favor.
- What is Raise the Red Lantern like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Raise the Red Lantern as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Raise the Red Lantern violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Raise the Red Lantern as mild.
- What did critics think of Raise the Red Lantern?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a landmark period drama distinguished by its breathtaking visual composition, emotional force, and Gong Li's performance.
- Which films are like Raise the Red Lantern?
- Films with a similar feel include The Story of Qiu Ju, To Live, and The Handmaiden.
- How long is Raise the Red Lantern?
- Raise the Red Lantern runs 125 minutes.
