Contemporary Chinese Films and Celebrity Directors

Download or read book Contemporary Chinese Films and Celebrity Directors written by Shenshen Cai and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-03-10 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This new text examines recent popular Chinese films and derivative cultural phenomena, with a focus on films directed by celebrity directors such as Han Han, Guo Jingming, Xu Jinglei and Zhao Wei. In opposition to Fifth and Sixth Generation Chinese filmmakers who explored the grand-narratives of history, the oppression of the pre-socialist and socialist eras, and those marginalized by socio-economic changes, the celebrity directors at the heart of this book center on the new trends of living and emotional challenges faced by contemporary Chinese people, in particular the younger generations. This book sheds light on newly emerging social and cultural fashions in contemporary China, such as the social stigma of being ‘left-over’ (reflected in Xu Jinglei’s films), the issue of wealth ‘flaunting’ (represented in Guo Jingming’s films) or nostalgia for the long lost innocence of adolescence (demonstrated in Zhao Wei’s film). Considering present-day consumer capitalism through the lens of cinema, this text analyses in detail the significance of films chosen for their relevance, providing a reflection of social reality and cultural changes in 21st century China.