Chinese 120
Paper 2
16 December 2003

“Hibiscus Town”

    “Hibiscus Town” is a very modern Chinese movie. It was banned from China because of its political messages. It has been re-released, but prior to it there were many concerns before it would happen. Many controversial and bold statements were made, whether blatant or subtle, and this made it a target for the government to ban. The political issues, communist interpretations, depictions of leaders, realism and the ideas of ongoing issues make this film so controversial and modern.
  First and foremost, the re-release was a sensitive idea because the government was portrayed in a bad light. The Chinese government always wanted to look good (as do all other governments) and so any negative portrayals were banned from the market. In “Hibiscus Town,” the lady Cadre Li was shown as a sort of “bad guy,” making the government look really bad. Also, whenever shameful or bad moments occurred, Mao’s picture was in the background insinuating he was the cause of all the unjust during the Cultural Revolution. In true communism, humanism is looked down upon. Communism is all about equal rights and power and humanism is the path to individualism and the self-fulfillment of one’s rights… given a person has rights, that is. In the beginning, Hu Yu-yin and her husband own a small bean curd shop and they make a lot of money and are able to buy and build their own house. This idea of working to improve oneself is definitely not looked upon as a good thing in China, because if everyone in China decided to do that there would be pure chaos. Another example of humanism is when Hu Yu-yin and “Crazy Qin” get married and decide to have a baby. In China, a couple must ask the government for permission before marrying or having children. Due to being shunned from the community, Hu Yu-yin and Crazy Qin would secretly meet and eventually began getting it on. The pregnancy was the last straw, because this would not be able to be hid from others. The government found out about this defiant act of humanism and they were both put on probation.
    This movie shines a light on the truth of the Cultural Revolution and the fact that it was not just those years of the Revolution that people were oppressed and discriminated against. Before the actual Revolution began people were already begin persecuted as was shown with Hu Yu-yin’s husband. Flashbacks of Hu Yu-yin and her first boyfriend show how he was torn between choosing either the government or Hu Yu-yin, and that he couldn’t choose both. After the revolution injustice still occurred, and still does today. An example of that is how Cadra Li is shown afterwards going off to get married and she is in a higher power than she was before. This showed that no matter what one did, as long as they had the right connections with the higher powers they were able to get a high position.
    The realism of this movie goes both ways, both realistic and unrealistic. Some negatives were portrayed, but not to the full extent because if that happened then it would truly be banned. The movie showed the truth that not all Cadras were bad, there was the friendly Cadra Gu. All in all, this is more of a love story than an account of China’s history. Thinking about China’s government, is seems as though a true documentation of China’s history and the Cultural Revolution and its injustices will not be made any time soon.
    Now there is the issue of China’s present and future ongoing issues. The movie touches on the left over scars that the Revolution left on the people. It showed how although some things were attempted to be mended, such as Hu Yu-yin getting her home and shop back, the past was still in the minds and lives of the people; Crazy Qin could not reverse time and be there as his son grew up. The movie ends on an ominous note with Wang Chiu-she going through the town calling “another movement” was coming. This brings up the question of if China is going to have another Revolution or movement. Is China stable? As a true Communist country, China would be more stable, but it appears that it isn’t anymore. Opportunity is not equal along the masses and there are large differences between classes. China is more capitalist, but they refuse to admit it. They insist they are “Socialism with Chinese characteristics.” The future of China is unknown. Looking at the rich history of China and how it’s been around for centuries, this tiny period of 60 years shouldn’t really make a dent in it. China could easily go either way in the years to come.

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