Coming Home (2014) User Reviews (44)

A deeply moving melodrama

[FrenchEddieFelson · 8/10 · 12 August 2019]

In China, in the early 70s, Lu Yanshi (Daoming Chen), a political prisoner, is released at the end of the Cultural Revolution. When he returns home, he discovers that his wife Feng Wanyu (Gong Li) is suffering from amnesia: she waits every day for the return of her husband, without understanding that he is at her side.

I loved the infinite tenderness that emerges from this film. The rhythm of the film is intentionally slow and we feel a real chemistry between the three main actors (father, mother and daughter). The director Yimou Zhang immerses us in a beautiful love story with the poignant beauty and intense presence of the actress Gong Li, with the extraordinary talent of the actor Daoming Chen who plays soberly in the shadow of his wife, with a neat, delicate and graceful photography.

As a synthesis: behind a slight facade of political pamphlet, a delightful ode of lyricism. 8/9 of 10

Warm and human

[lauralancee · 8/10 · 31 December 2014]

Coming Home is a great example of the way in which a movie can move you, play on your emotions, without being sentimental in a negative sense. Without being a tear-jerker. And without harsh images of struggle and war. But with excellent acting, small gestures and not so much words. This movie is all about empathy, first among the characters in the story depicted, but by consequence also among the audience, that is swept away and taken in by the sentiment.

This doesn't mean that the story is only about love and compassion. The Cultural Revolution in China (1966-1976) was far from being peaceful and compassionate. People were separated for years without any information, were forced to report any 'wrong' behavior that could 'harm' or 'threaten' the Communist Party. Coming Home shows how such an environment affects people at the individual, family level. People get damaged and family relations are shattered because of betrayal.

Coming Home succeeds in portraying the consequences of such a regime, by showing what humanity and compassion mean. And that is what makes it special, and refreshing in a world where it sometimes feels like these values are hard to find.

Slow-moving (in the best possible way) romantic drama from China

[paul-allaer · 8/10 · 24 October 2015]

"Coming Home" (2014 release from China; 110 min.) brings the story of Lu, a "rightist bastard" during the Cultural Revolution. As the movie opens, we see a woman (Feng) and her daughter (Dandan) being called into the Propaganda Office of the girl's school, where they learn that Lu (the husband and father, respectively) has escaped from labor camp, and that they are not to see him. Feng and Lu nevertheless decide to meet up at the train station, where Lu gets captured again. We are then told "Three years later, the Cultural Revolution ends", and Lu arrives back home. Much to his shock, Feng does not recognize him. What caused Feng's amnesia? Will she ultimately recognize him? To tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from director Zhang Yimou (best known here for "House of the Flying Daggers"), Here he tackles a potentially sensitive topic in China, namely the horrible Cultural Revolution. But don't think that this is a political movie. Instead, it is a love story that happens to be set during and after the Cultural Revolution. Feng is played by the leading Chinese actress Gong Li (think of her as the Meryl Streep of China), and plays the role with restraint and visible hurt. Special mention also for the beautiful Zhang Huiwen in the role of Dandan (check out the ballet performances!). Last but not least, I couldn't help but notice that the piano you hear in the orchestral score is played by none other than Lang Lang. Bottom line: "Coming Home" is a slow-moving (in the best possible way) movie that examines the long shadows of the Cultural Revolution through the eyes of one particular couple.

This movie is now a year and a half, yet it recently showed up out of the blue at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. Better late than never I suppose. The weekday evening screening where I saw this at was attended poorly. A shame. If you are in the mood for a top-notch quality foreign movie that is light years away from your standard Hollywood fare, you may want to give this a try. "Coming Home" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Not so good as expected.

[qw0aszx · 7/10 · 16 May 2014]

I had high expectation for Zhang Yimou's latest film Coming Home, because he finally went back to tell a simple and plain story. So when I heard there was an advanced screening on May 11, I immediately went to see it. However, after watching this 111-minute movie, I was disappointed. To be precisely, I had mixed feeling about the film, I think it is Zhang's best film since House of Flying Daggers, however it is still not a good film. The story is simple, the cinematography is simple, everything is simple in this film, just like what Zhang promised. He intended to make everything simple, trying so hard to drop his color- using style and maintain simple. However, such simpleness is intended, it is not natural. For simple life story movies (Yi Yi, Platform, The World, A Simple Life), the key to be a great movie is if it could give audience a special feeling and a deep theme through its simpleness. And such thing behind its simpleness is the soul of the movie. However, Coming Home didn't achieve that, I can barely feel anything behind its intended simpleness and schmaltz. Its soul is empty. Still, I have to admit, there are some good sides of the film, especially Gong Li and Chen Daoming's amazing acting. Their performances are superb, one of the best performances I've seen in recent years. Also, I love the well-crafted first 10-minute and the sentimental ending. All in all, I appreciated Zhang's trying of going back to the simple and I wish he could continue that. Coming Home may not be a fantastic film but it is still a well-crafted movie with some touching moments. My score: 7.1

(PS: To understand the film ,be sure to learn some background information and the history about the Cultural Revolution. Due to the censorship in China, Zhang can't tell something about the story too obvious, so if you know nothing about that history, you will be confused by something happens in the film.)

Back to Simple Pleasures for Zhang Yimou

[LemonLadyR · 10/10 · 29 September 2015]

By 'simple pleasures', I don't mean that in any way to reference the Chinese Cultural Revolution, but his return to simple films, about simple people, beautifully crafted, acted, and very revealing about everyday Chinese life (as much as he is able).

Zhang Yimou (Chinese names put the surname first, IMDb doesn't, alas) is arguably one of the best directors of the 20th and early 21st centuries (best known in the West for House of Flying Daggers). He always evokes a magical feeling in me, and I love his technique and precision; almost every frame is a painting. He chose to remain in mainland China and has walked a very thin tightrope in making the kinds of films he has, as he does not shy away from the political situation in China, at least as part of everyday people's lives, which it is, of course. His films are just not primarily about Chinese politics (although his simple, but great early film, The Story of Qiu Ju, is about Chinese bureaucracy, and was indeed banned for a time. The fact that Gong Li, in this film, screams to the prison officials that have come to capture her husband, "What did you do to him to make him want to escape?", turning the blame for his prison escape back onto them, illustrates what their intl fame allows them to get away with.

Gong Li, Zhang Yimou's ex-wife, is, I believe, the premiere female actress in China (and now known worldwide, since the wonderful film, Raise the Red Lantern, was nominated for an Oscar in 1990), with good reason, and an actress of incredible breadth and depth. Even though she has been on many 'most beautiful people' lists, (she is very made up here (or down!)), her craft is everything and I cannot watch her enough. She is lately known here for Memoirs of a Geisha, as the evil Hatsumomo.

I was very, very glad to see Zhang Yimou and Gong Li reunite, professionally, for 2 recent films. They seem to push each other upward and she makes a perfect muse for him.

Ah, the film...(I love telling people about them!). Coming Home is about a couple dealing with and trying to reunite after Gong Li's husband is imprisoned for a couple of decades during the Cultural Revolution in China. She grows progressively ill, which adds to their difficulties, thus the meat of the movie is about their reuniting difficulties. Definitely without a stock Hollywood ending! I was struck by one very incredible scene... It is just a walk across the kitchen by Gong Li, when her husband is knocking at her door. She has been warned severely by the police. This walk seems to take several hours as she haltingly walks across the floor, with all the ramifications, both political and personal, flashing across her face and obviously in her mind. It is one of the most astonishing 20 seconds of film I think I have ever seen, and done without dialog, melodrama or Hollywood artifice.

Zhang Yimou has crafted a fine film here. It is slow, but in a good way, which builds a lot of emotional suspense. Someone said it only covers the last 20-30 pages of the book upon which it is based. As usual, every aspect of the film is top notch and it walks on the edge of the dramatic sword in a perfectly balanced manner. It will go down as another of my favorite Zhang Yimou movies. Be patient, although the tension he creates will keep you pinned, if not a bit frustrated, but that is also the beauty of it, and enjoy! And check out some of his other films!

Tender, Moving Love Story

[manuelteixeiraa · 25 October 2014]

Zhang yimou done it again. And Gong Li is more than ever - one of her best roles...i'm always hoping that she does more movies. And when Yimou and Gong Li work together it always comes an amazing movie. I wish they could go on professionaly together."Coming Home": It is a simple story, yet with powerful meanings. Everything is beautiful: the performances, the direction, the photography, the music... And that piano scene... Achingly. Every yimou's movies has such sensibility. He really knows how to touch.

Thank you Gong Li and Zhang Yimou.

An applause too for the male actor and the girl who played the daughter - hope she will get a great career.

A small story about a greater tragedy

[thelioniswatching · 7/10 · 8 February 2015]

It's been 20 years since Zhang's TO LIVE was banned in China, the director and female lead prohibited from speaking about it and were forbidden from working for 2 years. And it's been 15 years since Zhang withdrew his films from Cannes in the aftermath of the continuing debate as to whether his films are pro or anti government.

I can't think of another director whose work is subject to as much scrutiny regarding their political leanings.

If you are looking for an overt criticism of the Cultural Revolution, then this film won't satisfy. What we have is a simple story, less obvious and more oblique, but still emotional and powerfully moving.

It's a tender story of a man trying to reconnect with his amnesiac wife and estranged daughter through a series of small but heart-felt gestures.

The thought that struck me during the final scene, watching an elderly couple - Feng Wanyu and Lu Yanshi, waiting for the husband to come home, was that not only might he never come back, but the 20 years that kept them apart would NEVER come back. And that's a pretty strong indictment of a troubling period in China's history.

Remind me of the hardness that my parents went thru

[judy_apple · 9/10 · 10 June 2015]

I'm was born in early 90s in China. As I grow up, my parents always consciously saving up everything. They do not waste anything, food, clothes, etc..

My mom is good at stitching clothes. Even thou she can afford buying a new pair of socks, she chose to stitch up the worn ones. I thought I'd never understand why my parents are so thrifty, until I watched this movie.

I came to realize what a hard, tough and poor life my parents had went thru after watching this movie. I was even surprised that my parents could actually survived that period of time.

I realized that people don't need that much of things to survive. When my friend and I shopping in mall, talking about cosmetics and luxury bags, and living a wealthy and "fancy" life, while my mother when she was in my age, struggling to live, wearing the same clothes everyday, celebrating her birthday by only eating an egg, running after trains in order to pick up the "coal ball" (trains in old time use coal as the fuel and the coal ball is the coal which was not fully burned, and could still being used for generating a little heat).

This is a great movie to honor that harsh period of time in China's history. And I'm also glad to see that Chinese government now allows people to talk about that period of time and even make a movie about it.

I wanted to like this one a lot more than I did

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 15 March 2016]

This is a very interesting idea for a film and actually criticizes, indirectly, recent Chinese history. Both made me excited to see the film...yet, sadly, I found the film incredibly flat....well acted but flat and lifeless.

The film begins during the so-called 'Cultural Revolution' in mainland China. It was a period in Communist Chinese history when Mao set off a period where supposed remnants of decadence and capitalism were purged. What actually happened is that intellectuals, professors and others were violently beaten, killed or imprisoned by student groups. Nothing much came of this movement (my opinion, of course, but one supported by most historians) and it mostly just made a lot of folks miserable. During this time, Lu is arrested for his decadence though exactly what he supposedly did is never mentioned in the film. Instead, he simply disappears and he finally returns home many, many years later. However, he's shocked to see that his wife's mind has snapped and Feng no longer recognizes him...and even calls out for help when he enters the home! All the while she keeps insisting throughout the film that 'Yu will be coming home on the 5th'...though in her mind the 5th never arrives.

So the setup for this is very interesting as is Yu's attempt to get his wife to recognize him. However, ultimately the film goes no where and is just depressing and tedious. The pacing is THE problem with the film, though the downbeat ending didn't help. Too bad, as the concept and the acting are quite good.

NEVER COMING HOME. 😢

[MadamWarden · 8/10 · 10 June 2020]

This is a poignant, very sad yet beautiful little movie. Powerful drama with amazing acting and direction. A difficult watch and yet captivating. You keep waiting for the happy end which, in a way, does arrive.

Zhang's handling of this extremely unpleasant period in China's chequered history is masterful. It really is striking to look back on this and reflect on the China of today. Unbelievable transition. Yet I feel the simple nobility and strength of the family unit portrayed in this movie, endures.

Very special little movie.

More effective as a metaphor than as a melodrama.

[shawneofthedead · 6/10 · 5 June 2014]

In more ways than the literal, Coming Home represents a homecoming of sorts for acclaimed director Zhang Yimou and Gong Li, one of his most constant and effective muses. In recent years, he has dabbled with martial arts epics and she has gone to Hollywood and back. Coming Home – on the surface a small, intimate drama, but really a film with loftier ambitions – feels more like the spiritual cousin of the work that first brought them to the attention of cineastes all over the world.

Gong Li plays Wanyu, the devoted wife of Yanshi (Chen Daoming), an intellectual sent to prison during China's Cultural Revolution. Their daughter Dandan (Zhang Huiwen) grows up resentful of a man whose effective outlaw status has adversely affected their standing in the schoolroom and in society. When his long imprisonment finally ends, Yanshi returns to his family – only to find that Wanyu no longer recognises him.

There's a lot to appreciate in Zhang's bittersweet (emphasis: bitter) film. The tragedy of this love story plays out in beautifully devastating images: Wanyu waiting with a painstakingly hand-made sign at the train station for a man she won't recognise anyway; Yanshi sitting with a chestful of letters, each filled with cramped, light-starved words pledging love for a family he might never see again. There's an unmistakable undercurrent of political darkness here, too: the Cultural Revolution has, quite literally, robbed Yanshi of his identity, and returned him to his wife a stranger.

The trouble with Coming Home is that, even with all of its politics and metaphors, the film is really little more than an extremely well-played melodrama. Wanyu's ailment is the kind that looms large in soap operas and, while it's handled by Zhang with considerable class and dignity, it still feels faintly heavy-handed and – at times – a bit ridiculous.

Much of this melodramatic tedium is alleviated by Zhang's superlative cast. Gong, stripped of make-up and bravely showing her age, slips into Wanyu's broken soul with plenty of grace – which helps keep her predicament more interesting than it really is. Chen plays the stoic Yanshi with great sensitivity, no easy feat when the character is forced to confront his heartbreak at the beloved wife he has lost every single day. Newcomer Zhang Huiwen fares well, too, in the tricky role of the flighty, difficult daughter whose teenage tantrums have sadly woven their way into the faultlines threaded through this family.

With Coming Home, Zhang has crafted something very odd: a soap opera that aspires to say something a little more. It's why the film can feel so powerful and so frustrating, often at the same time. When placed in the larger context of an oppressive China, the film and its sad, broken romantic centrepiece make a lot more sense. On its own terms, however, the love story at the heart of Coming Home is only barely-disguised melodrama – and thus, more likely to frustrate than engage.

"Coming Home" is a difficult journey, but extremely rewarding.

[dave-mcclain · 8/10 · 25 October 2015]

Sometimes a movie comes along that requires your patience, but is worth every minute of your time. "Coming Home" (PG-13, 1:49) is one of those movies. It's a Chinese film, which, for most of us, means subtitles, but this film is from Yimou Zhang, the director of "Hero" and "House of the Flying Daggers", and stars Gong Li (also known as Li Gong), who starred in "House of the Flying Daggers" and "Memoirs of a Geisha", as well as "Hannibal Rising" and "Miami Vice". This film's pace is slow, but an open-minded audience member's reward will be a dramatic and heart-breaking romance that you won't soon forget.

The setting is China, during Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong's "Cultural Revolution". Starting in 1966, and only really ending with Mao's death in 1976, this was a nationwide effort to purge remnants of capitalism and even Chinese culture which ran contrary to Chairman Mao's personal interpretation of communism. Party officials and local police publicly humiliated and harassed people, seized property, relocated many Chinese citizens, tortured some and arbitrarily imprisoned others. One of those was a college professor named Lu Yanshi (Daoming Chen), whose time in Chinese labor camps kept him away from his wife, Feng Wanyu (Gong Li) and young daughter Dandan (Huiwen Zhang) for a total of 20 years.

As the film opens, Feng and her teenage daughter are summoned to the office of a party official who informs them that Lu has escaped from prison. The official sternly reminds them that failure to report any contact with Lu is a crime. The thoroughly indoctrinated Dandan responds obediently by spouting a line of communist propaganda. Feng merely responds that she understands. Lu does try to rejoin his family, resulting in some of the most tense and best-acted scenes I've ever watched on the big screen.

It is only after the Cultural Revolution ends that Lu can return home safely. By that time, Feng is suffering from a type of amnesia that requires her to refer to notes so she can accomplish ordinary daily tasks and, tragically, also renders her unable to recognize her husband. She remembers Feng as a young man, but when she finally sees him face to face, she mistakes him for a party official whom she hates and she kicks him out of the house. No one, can convince her that the man she has turned away really is Lu – not the local communist party officials and not even Feng's own daughter who has grown up to regret the ways she had denied or been disloyal to her father. Neither the audience, nor Lu himself knows whether, the next time Feng sees him, she'll mistake him for an old enemy, think that he is a piano tuner or a friendly neighbor, or even acknowledge him at all.

Lu takes up residence in an abandoned store across the street and his daughter, now living on her own, establishes a relationship with Lu and works with him to try overcoming her mother's amnesia. Feng receives a long-delayed letter from Lu telling her that he's coming home "on the 5th of the month". She readies the house in anticipation, even as she sees Lu around the neighborhood on a regular basis, but never recognizes him. Lu and Dandan talk to Feng's doctor and try various strategies, direct and indirect, hoping to get Feng to remember her heart-broken husband. Meanwhile, on the 5th of every month, Feng journeys to the train station and holds a hand-made sign with her husband's name on it until the last of the passengers have descended the long, stone staircase and the workers close the large, metal gates.

"Coming Home" is a combination of the 1965 classic romance "Doctor Zhivago" and the more modern romance in 2004's "The Notebook", but with a distinct Chinese sensibility. The setting, however, is merely background. This film has the potential to deeply affect people regardless of age or nationality. The acting is truly outstanding, especially from Gong Li who lives completely in every moment of this film, acts with every cell of her body and gives a performance for the ages. This film is so well written, directed, acted and edited that it requires no understanding of the Chinese language and no knowledge of Chinese history or culture to enjoy and appreciate this timeless tale of love, loss and redemption. It may sound trite, but the language of love truly is universal. That, and the other emotions and relationships that are part of this story require nothing more than a human heart to understand. I'd rather that this film had incorporated a little more variation in tone and pacing, but there is no denying this film's power to use the emotions of its characters to touch the emotions of its audience. "A-"

Thoughtful and rewarding

[Qrobur · 7/10 · 29 September 2014]

During the Chinese Cultural Revolution Lu is incarcerated far from his wife Yu and daughter Dandan. He escapes briefly to find the former is frightened but devoted, the latter hostile to him.

At the end of the Cultural Revolution Lu is rehabilitated and sent home, only to find that his wife is suffering from a catastrophic condition that means she cannot remember him. The film centres on Lu and his now reconciled daughter's efforts to restore her memory and their family life.

Slow-paced, beautifully shot and bittersweet, the story is unravelled and revealed in a thoughtful and moving manner.

Repetitive

[MikeyB1793 · 4/10 · 19 November 2015]

The subject of this movie is noble. It's about a woman whose husband is incarcerated for many years in China's version of the Gulag. She suffers brain damage at the hand of Chinese police thugs and is unable to recognize her husband when he does return. This should have been a good movie on an interesting subject. It wasn't. It faded after the first hour – and that's being generous. Here's what went wrong –

• It becomes repetitive – we are taken to the train station over and over as the woman awaits her husband. He is with her when this is done. He tries various mechanisms to achieve recognition. This is done over and over again – we got the message after the first couple of tries. It becomes a very boring version of the old Bill Murray "Ground Hog Day".

• Speaking of the word "boring" the film becomes this. It has no energy whatsoever.

• There is absolutely no humour at all – two solid excruciating hours of grimness and glumness.

• The story becomes claustrophobic. In the same room, with the same people having the same conversations, trying so desperately to make this woman remember the past. Too much of the same old thing.

Great movie but

[MovieIQTest · 3 May 2022]

Some of the dialog at the very beginning not quite correct and right during the Chinese Culture Revolution. The Chinese people in that darkest ten years torment, many jargon would not be said like what we heard in this movie. If the protagonist is a "Spy" as his daughter called him, he would already have been shot instead of banished to a far away poor farm as a labor. Such labors at that time were tagged as "Anti-Revolutionist" , "The Left Extremist", "Stinking Old Nine" or "The 5th Black Category Member". There were many carelessly written labeling names or words that didn't comply with that atrocious era. I was just amazed how the billion Chinese would let go of such torturous and treacherous when the Culture Revolution lost its goal and suddenly ended after 10 years living hell. Most Chinese are not like the Jewish people who had suffered so much that they would never let it go and so easily forget what their ancestors suffered. But the Chinese people are such weird species with extremely short memory. When every absurd but cruel movement ended, what they had experienced was just like the old Western saying: "Water under The Bridge", they just took it for granted and awaiting the next movement coming up to torture them. This is also explained why the CCP regime still exists so far, and again, the Chinese people are suffering the prison-like deadly control during a lightweight Omicron virus crisis. They are whining, crying and complaining, but I guess when the CCP decides to end the siege, they would immediately forget what they once suffered, just like what their parents and grandparents had suffered during the Cultural Revolution. Living under the iron fist of the CCP, Short Memory, Letting Go and Moving On maybe are all must-have for the 1.4 billion Chinese subjects?

Stunningly Depressing

[dctrlmbvlp · 7/10 · 17 March 2017]

This moving is amazing. I liked watching it, and personally, as a student learning Mandarin Chinese, i enjoyed picking up bits of the language. However, this movie is not something you want to watch after a bad day at school, or when tissues are scarce. The ending is not very happy, and leaves you wanting a "just kidding" sign at the end, followed by a better conclusion. while watching this movie I cried and my soul poured out my eyes. My DVD player is broken now from water damage, and I have no idea what happened to all the kitchen knives. Please be careful.

AN EXCELLENT WATCH !!

[postsenthil · 8/10 · 27 October 2019]

What is a home ? Is it just four walls under a roof that provide shelter to a family ? Or.. Is it the sense of belonging that every member of a family holds toward each other and to the family as a whole ..? Indeed, it is the confluence of souls that find solace and succour in one another, especially when they wade through turbid tides of troubled times. Noted director Zhang Yimou's Coming Home explores this theme in a family drama set in the tumultuous era of Chinese cultural revolution (1966-76).



It recounts the story of a small Chinese family of Professor Lu Yanshi (Chen Daoming), his wife Feng Wan Yu (Gong Li) and their daughter - Dandan (Hang Huiwen). Early in the movie, at the height of cultural revolution, we find this family is thrown into disarray when Professor Lu is forcibly separated from his wife and infant daughter on being accused of anti-national activities. He is one among the millions who are incarcerated and relegated to a labour camp for a long sentence. Several years pass by as we see that, under the watchful glare of the state which is wary of Lu's status of an anti-national, Feng is struggling to make ends meet as a teacher even as Dandan, a student at the ballet academy, is struggling in her own way to land a part of lead in a prestigious stage show. When Lu makes a desperate attempt to flee his captors and reunite with his family, Feng is having a difficult dilemma between rejoicing his escape, being wary of Dandan who barely remembers him and sees him merely as the source of their miserable status and the state which puts them under a microscope to recapture him if he contacts them. Ultimately, when he does return home, he is quickly pounced upon by the state authorities who were tipped off by Dandan on the hope that such loyalty would help her secure that coveted part in the show. Fate plays a cruel trick as soon after the arrest, Dandan is spurned for that role as she is still seen as the daughter of an outlaw and her mother shuts her out for what she sees an unforgivable betrayal. Some years later, when Lu is released after the Cultural Revolution, he returns to find his family shattered as his wife is suffering from an amnesia and his daughter is forced to eke out a living as a textile worker. Feng is unable to recognise Lu as her husband and she continues to wait for him to return from incarceration. The rest of the movie narrates the attempts of Yu to rebuild his family and reconnect to his wife.



Yimou's narrative is subtle, yet profound in observations. It is indeed a travesty when you require an official letter to recognise somebody who is your own. And, at times, even that is not proof enough. Feng's loss of memory is perhaps, her pathetic, final attempt to shut out a State that seeks to seep down and intrude into every element of her existence to enforce a compliance to its prescribed code of conduct.



Through the prism of this family, the director showcases how an authoritarian state can appropriate one's life so ruthlessly that the citizens remain helpless and mute spectator as their life and family get trampled over by the giant wheels of a State machinery which pulls its entire citizenry in a particular direction to a predetermined destination. The instruments of the state intrude into every sphere of their life to suffocate them off any meaningful independence in exercise of their choices and where the individuals and their every aspiration is subordinated to the professed Party line and jingoistic nationalism.



The movie is anchored by stellar performances from the three leads - a spellbinding Gong Li and equally spectacular performances by Chen & Zhang who portray the multiple nuances of their roles effectively. Yimou's movie is ultimately a tale of triumph of the human spirit and the endless love it is capable of as well as the phenomenal power of such love to emancipate, enliven, energize and create beauty from bleakest of circumstances.

The poignant, multi-layered movie replete with metaphors which premiered in Cannes in 2014 has won several accolades at several film festivals across the world.

light hearted and unique

[roundtablet · 7/10 · 10 June 2018]

The combination of Zhang Yimou and Gong Li has proven to be quite promising in the past, with movies like "Raise the red lantern" or "They live". With Zhangs ability to pick such interesting source material and his incredible and unique directing ability and Gong Li's ability to make such breath taking and believable performances its really no wonder. Now, with their latest release "Going home" it seems to me they hit their old mark.

As described in the synopsis, the movie is a drama about a wife not remembering her husband as he comes home after two centuries of separation, since he was a political prisoner during the Cultural Revolution.

The pacing of the movie was very well and the cinematography was overall quite nice, not outstanding like in Zhangs other movies, such as "Hero" or "Raise the red lantern", but it fits the movie.

The acting of this movie was excellent, especially from Gong Li. It's nice to see her in a role that is so unique compared to everything she did before (although I have to say I haven't got the time yet to see all her works). She really likes to choose her roles to challenge herself and experience new things and that's one thing I really like about her. But also Chen Dao-Ming made a great performance and I really have to check out more movies with him. Also worth mentioning is Zhang Huiwen, she made a very nice performance as well and it was her debut role I might add.

There are only two things in the movie I disliked. For one, I think many of the plot devices of the movie were unnecessarily shuffled into the face of the audience. I always appreciate it more when directors make certain details about character and their motivations not that obvious, only for people who pay attention. There are stories that don't really need it and it never bothered me in Zhangs works before, but I really noticed it in "Going home", because it could have given the movie another layer to it.

Another thing that I disliked about the movie was its soundtrack. A really well composed soundtrack would have helped the emotional scenes be even better. Now they had a nice little piano piece rather at the end, but that alone wasn't enough. It was unusual for Zhang since his movies had such fitting scores before, making emotional scenes so complete. But I have to add that I really like how Zhangs can make scenes touching without using any soundtrack at all.

So overall I can only recommend for you to check out Zhangs "Going home", it's a lovely and touching story, with very strong performances. I think it is very relatable even if you have never experienced something like that in your own life.

Chinese love that doesn't go fast.

[y-26698 · 8/10 · 18 June 2020]

Spielberg "cried for an hour" did not lie. I felt like I had been stabbed and watched, and I felt like I was dehydrated when I left the cinema. The Chinese love, which is not fast-paced, is surrounded by the times and shows two sides.

Chinese people need to open their hearts and minds

[kluseba · 7/10 · 10 June 2019]

Zhang Yimou's Coming Home is a thought-provoking, slow-paced and emotionally moving drama that tells the tragic story of a family torn apart by the Cultural Revolution. The movie is surprisingly critical of China's past, takes its time to introduce the three profound main characters and offers a harrowing tale of family, love and loyalty.

The film revolves around professor, husband and father Lu who gets sent to a labour camp in Northwest China. Many years later, he escapes from the labour camp and attempts to visit his wife and daughter. While his wife is enthusiastic to see him again, the daughter has been heavily indoctrinated by the Communist Party and believes her father is responsible for the family's difficult situation. When she meets her father briefly, she reveals the information to the police and hopes to get the lead role in a ballet in return. Her father gets arrested the next day, her mother breaks down in tears and the daughter still doesn't get the lead role. Three years later, the Cultural Revolution has come to an end and Lu finally comes home. He is welcomed by his cold and distant daughter Dandan and is shocked when he realizes that his wife Yu doesn't remember him anymore. He learns that she is suffering from amnesia and tries to reawaken her memory through déjà vu by showing her pictures of their past, reading her the letters he wrote her and playing music they have listened to together. Even though his wife still does't recognize him, Lu doesn't give up on her and prefers to spend his life being a stranger to his wife instead of trying his luck elsewhere.

The movie convinces with stunning acting performances. Chen Daoming incarnates the faithful, intellectual and patient professor perfectly. Gong Li is stunningly realistic as confused, fragile and longing teacher. Zhang Huiwen delivers the goods as desperate, haunted and manipulated daughter. Based upon the novel The Criminal Lu Yanshi by Geling Yan, the script convinces with its critical realism. This is supported by honest settings that portray the poverty and simplicity of life in urban China throughout the seventies.

Potential viewers must be prepared to watch a slow-paced movie without any surprising plot twists, side stories or vivid outbursts.

If you appreciate realistic dramas, this movie will grow on you and might move you by the end as you will get attached to the three tragic characters. In Canada, many members of the First Nations have testified being unable to express genuine love to their children because they have been abused in their own childhoods in residential schools. This tendency transcends through generations and is still an ongoing problem even decades after the end of this silent genocide. In a certain way, something similar can be said about certain people from China who have been indoctrinated in a way that they are unable to love their own family or to get engaged in a passionate relationship until today. A movie like Coming Home helps this long and difficult healing process and shows that family, love and loyalty are more important than educational, material and political matters.

Very touching and heartfelt movie

[Tessa9812 · 10/10 · 16 September 2016]

It's been a long time since I've watched a film that deeply affected me in a disturbing way. This movie is a love story between a husband and wife driven apart because of the circumstances beyond their control. It also touches on families torn apart because of the policies in place during Mao's communist rule. While the movie focused on one family, it's easy to envision similar hardships befallen on other families during that time.

The movie focuses on the family dynamic as a result of the fallout of Mao's policies. What made this movie was Gong Li's superb performance. It's been a while since I've seen her act in movies and I was awe struck by her acting in this film. Her portrayal of a woman who forever waits for her beloved husband's return moved me to tears.

The dialogue is minimal in this movies. Instead, the actors convey the sense of loneliness and love between the two people with body language. Gong Li executes this exceedingly well. So much so that I couldn't stop thinking of her character's forlong looks days after watching the movie!

Other reviewers have criticized the director for taking just the last few chapters of the book to turn into a movie. However, I think his focus for this movie was on the fallout rising from Mao's policies, hence only the passing allusion to the Cultural Revolution and the title 'Coming Home'.

I personally thought this movie was Gong Li and Zhang Yimou combo's finest collaboration (just barely edging out To Live).

Feel it's missing something that touches my heart

[flytouniverse · 7/10 · 2 February 2022]

I like the story, the performance, and entire background of the dark time of China when lots of people suffered their lives, lost their loved ones, turned on each other to survive. But I think it's kind of much less harsh compared to Zhang's early films.

It's hard to explain, but I will try...

[pokemonwb · 8/10 · 29 August 2015]

The film contains absolutely minimum information about the dark side of the cultural revolution,which the books was all about. If you want to know more about that history, try read some books or some foreign documentaries, because a commercial movie that reveals those will never be released in mainland China and probably wouldn't even be finished, especially from a highly influential director like Zhang.

The brilliant side of Zhang, is that if you know enough about that time period, none of those ugly facts that this movie missed needs to be described. The novel was fictional anyways, it is a reflection and a look at that ugly truth from a narrow but interesting angle. But Zhang didn't want the film to be about that. He chose only the last 20-30 pages of the book, beautifully painted out a love story of that generation, and stopped there.

It is like a rotten apple covered with nice tasty chocolate, you take a tiny bite, you see a little bit of what's under and realize it is bad, but then you still tries carefully licking only the chocolate cover, without touching or even thinking about the ugly inside, and by the time you finish you will still remember mostly the nice tasty part of the story.

If it is the ugly inside you are looking for, if you want to know how bad did it get during that time. Like mentioned earlier, go read the novel or look for other documentaries. Born well after that time period, even I can't bare the pain sometimes when I hear stories of that period. So thank you Zhang, for making some warm memories, and something not too bitter to chew with.

Can a stranger be a father?

[wickedmikehampton · 6/10 · 15 December 2020]

The poetic action movies of Chinese director Yimou Zhang have made a fortune. Contrastingly. his dramas are made on small budgets, plaintive yet poignant. Consequently, I was curious to see how a bigger budget would affect a drama.

Made in 2014, 'Coming Home' had better production but thankfully remained a simple drama albeit with an early plot twist.

The Communists declare an educated man a dissident. After 10 years imprisonment, he escapes to visit his wife and daughter. But his teen daughter doesn't have loyalty to him, only to the Party, so she turns him in. By the time he's released, his wife has Alzheimer's, and doesn't recognise him. The daughter, as an adult, is burdened with guilt.

'Coming Home' isn't as memorable as Yimou's others but I am pleased to have watched it, and appreciative of the non-traditional ending.

Rating's so high! ARE U KIDDING ME?????????

[molove_3 · 1/10 · 30 January 2015]

This movie is just ridiculous. We can know what the end will be 20min after the movie started, and we can even know what brought this movie to the end after half an hour. The movie will not come to an end because time is not up and the unrecognizing affairs are sure to happen over and over because the time is not up. When the time is up, I mean the time that a movie usually takes(for 2 hours APPROX.), she will succeed to recognize him. Isn't it ridiculous? A movie with a childish plot just wasting our time in waiting its end!!!Those so-called touched moments are just like a funny chess play. We know who the winner is so what's the point? Every step seems so redundant!