Product Details

• Actors: You Ge, Li Gong, Ben Niu, Wu Jiang, Zhang Lu
• Directors: Yimou Zhang
• Format: Color, Original recording reissued, NTSC
• Subtitles: English
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
• VHS Release Date: March 7, 2000
• Run Time: 132 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (117 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6305812055
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #165,102 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

One of the best films of 1994, To Live is a bold, energetic masterpiece from Zhang Yimou, the foremost director from China's influential "fifth generation" of filmmakers. Continuing his brilliant collaboration with China's best-known actress Gong Li (their previous films include Ju Dou and Raise the Red Lantern), Zhang weaves an ambitious tapestry of personal and political events, following the struggles of an impoverished husband and wife (Ge You, Gong Li) from their heyday in the 1940s to the hardships that accompanied the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s. They raise two children amidst a Communist regime, surviving numerous setbacks and yet managing, somehow, to live. Both intimate and epic, Zhang's film encompasses the simplest and most profound realities of Chinese life during this controversial period, and for their honesty, Zhang and Gong Li faced a two-year ban on future collaborations. To Live is a testament to their art, transcending politics to celebrate the tenacity of ordinary people in the wake of turbulent history. --Jeff Shannon

From The New Yorker

The epic of suffering is the fashion in new Chinese cinema, but whether the authorities will develop a taste for it is another matter. They certainly got heavy with the director Zhang Yimou after seeing this new movie; he will not be attending festivals abroad for some time. An odd reaction, really, for this is not his most provocative work-its assault on the Maoist programs of the fifties and sixties is secondary to its gentle, observant picture of a family's travails. The father (Ge You) is a gambler and-you guessed it-a puppetmaster; while he stumbles around in the war between the Communists and the Nationalists, the mother (Gong Li) is left at home raising their children. He returns, and then their troubles really begin. The ornate intensity of Zhang's earlier work has relaxed, and there are scenes here-family meals, for instance-that move with the simplicity of a Rossellini picture. But the sheer mass of narrative hurries things on. You keep waiting for Zhang, the impeccable stylist, to stop and stare. In Mandarin. -Anthony Lane
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

133 of 143 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the finest movies I've ever seen, April 14, 2002

By 

ZenPenguin (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: To Live [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I won't go into the details of this movie, one because it really should be enjoyed without any preface, and two because it has been described elsewhere. I rented the movie purely to see Gong Li, who is one of the most beautiful actresses out there. I was absolutely blown away by this film. The story, the acting, the flow; everything about it was masterful. I am a big fan of Zhang Yimou, but this film far outshines any other work he's done before or after. Gong's acting is superb, matched entirely by You Ge. The scene with the "tea" revenge caught me so offhand, in both the touching portral of Chinese family life mixed with the wonderful quirky humor, that I laughed out loud and nearly choked on some ice tea I was drinking at the time. 10 minutes later I was crying my eyes out. This movie left me shaking at the end, and I kept reliving scenes over and over days after I returned the rental. "To Live" is one of the best all-time films ever made, period.

70 of 77 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most Under rated movie of all time, December 22, 2000

By 

asiandiva20 (midwest USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: To Live [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Unfortunately foreign movies do not get the credit and publicity they deserve. If only people would be more open minded about foreign movies, they would discover the movie "To Live". To Live is a movie about life itself. It reflects what the common people in China experienced during the Cultural Revolution. We follow the life of an ordinary family that goes through many hardships, wondering if they would live or die. Through the hard times, it makes them realize how important life, family, and love really is. Ultimately in a country where there is so much chaos and tragedy, the only thing the people want, is TO LIVE. The actors/actresses in this movie are splendid, Gong Li is absolutely beautiful. I believe that her role in To Live is the most powerful and finest compared to all of her other movies. Somehow I can not explain it but Chinese movies have a way of portraying a person's character, their emotions in such a way that hits you right on the spot. That is something that American movies have not achieved yet. This movie will make you cry, laugh, and be thankful that you are alive. We win, we lose, life is not easy. I recommend this movie for anyone and everyone. It will make you think about your own life and be more thankful for what you have and don't have. It is just unfortunate that most people would never consider watching a Chinese movie, well they are missing out on the greatest movie.

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Vivid Reflection of the Tumultuous Period of China, March 5, 2000

By 

Donghui Zhang (Philadelphia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: To Live [VHS] (VHS Tape)

To live, an inalienable right of human beings that sounds so basic, one could easily take it for granted. However, during most of the time in this century in China, to live could be nothing less than a luxury.

The movie presents the audience a vivid picture of a former gambling addict, who lost every penny his family ever owned and, to his abyss, his family. One would not expect this mishap could save his life several decades later, when those financially privileged were executed as the people's enemies by the new government under the leadership of Chairman Mao.

He fought for the Nationalist government, became POW shortly after. He then served in the communist PLA, entertaining the staff as a master of shadow play.

The civil war ended, the country was split, while his wife and two children came back to him.

He thought it was time for peace, after so many years of warfare ranging from the revolution against the emperor to the Sino-Japanese War to the civil war. Like most Chinese, he felt that he could finally stand up.

To his disappointment, since the foundation of the People's Republic of China, he witnessed the Great Leap Forward, the class struggle, the Culture Revolution. Years of turmoil chattered all his dreams. His only goal became downgraded to living a simple life. He spared no effort to protect his family, but still lost his only son.

It took a quarter century after the civil war before he saw the long overdue peace. When the notorious Culture Revolution was over, there also disappeared the people's euphoria about the communism, as symbolized by the striking contrast in the different answers to the same question about the future of their family. "Chicken, goose, goat, cow and the communism" was replaced by just "chicken, goose, goat and cow". For countless Chinese, their bitterly learned lessons gradually alienated them from their government that they used to love and trust.

To Live is an excellent movie! It takes courage to show people the real picture of the past. For China, To Live could be a vaccine against more merciless class struggle and blind loyalty towards a self-claimed savor.