Farewell: My Concubine
Formal analysis on Farewell, My Concubine and Raise the Red Lantern.
Among the Chinese films that were shown in class, Farewell, My Concubine and Raise the Red Lantern could be distinguished as more modern films compared to others. Being that they are fairly modern piece of work, the camera techniques, the color scheme, and different props used in the two films were quite alike. It was really interesting to analyze the mise-en-scene of both of the films, because these two films carry out completely different storylines yet convey similar meanings through its mise-en-scene.
(Since we all watched the films together, I don’t think it’s really necessary for me to go into detail about the story-line of the films).
Setting:
Many of the pivotal scenes in Farewell my concubine, takes place at the Beijing opera training school. The Beijing opera training school is a big traditional house where they train the young boys to become opera stars. This opera house seems to be isolated from the outside with their own sets of rules and ideals set apart from the rest of the world. Even if these rules and ideals are made up of beatings and suffering, the boys in the house only had one goal in life, which was to become famous opera stars, and they would risk anything to acquire this dream. I thought this was very similar to Raise the Red Lantern. In this film, the concubines and the master live in a beautiful house. However, the way the house is built, creates a sense of isolation and separation from the outside world. The house is made up of high walls and doors that create a barrier between the society and the private life within the house. And, not only did these walls create barriers between the outside world and the lives of the people living in it, but it also created division between the wives. These wives don’t share any relationships with each other, other than feelings of competition and jealousy. This house is also made up of its own traditional system that
Among the Chinese films that were shown in class, Farewell, My Concubine and Raise the Red Lantern could be distinguished as more modern films compared to others. Being that they are fairly modern piece of work, the camera techniques, the color scheme, and different props used in the two films were quite alike. It was really interesting to analyze the mise-en-scene of both of the films, because these two films carry out completely different storylines yet convey similar meanings through its mise-en-scene.
(Since we all watched the films together, I don’t think it’s really necessary for me to go into detail about the story-line of the films).
Setting:
Many of the pivotal scenes in Farewell my concubine, takes place at the Beijing opera training school. The Beijing opera training school is a big traditional house where they train the young boys to become opera stars. This opera house seems to be isolated from the outside with their own sets of rules and ideals set apart from the rest of the world. Even if these rules and ideals are made up of beatings and suffering, the boys in the house only had one goal in life, which was to become famous opera stars, and they would risk anything to acquire this dream. I thought this was very similar to Raise the Red Lantern. In this film, the concubines and the master live in a beautiful house. However, the way the house is built, creates a sense of isolation and separation from the outside world. The house is made up of high walls and doors that create a barrier between the society and the private life within the house. And, not only did these walls create barriers between the outside world and the lives of the people living in it, but it also created division between the wives. These wives don’t share any relationships with each other, other than feelings of competition and jealousy. This house is also made up of its own traditional system that