JU DOU

br /> In the mountain country of 1920s China, a young innocent is purchased as a bride by a brutal, impotent, aging factory owner. His abuse of her triggers the sympathies of the old man's nephew, who becomes the girl's lover, with heavily ironic results. Zhang Yimou's first feature, RED SORGHUM (13th CIFF 1989), virtually eclipsed everything that had come before it in Chinese cinema. JU DOU is gaining similar acclaim, most recently winning the Golden Hugo Award at the 26th Chicago International Film Festival. It's been singled out for its vivid use of color and settings (shot against a background of carefully-preserved Ming and Ching Dynasty mansions) that elevate the erotic tragedy of the plot to something grand and beautiful.