Chinese historical films - Chronicles of the Celestial Empire

Chinese historical films - this is the whole direction of cinematography of the Celestial Empire. Filmed such a huge number of films. Most of them have no relation to the history of the country, because they are distorted facts, costumes do not correspond to the era. The main goal of such films is to glorify the state and people of China.

Specialists point out that the shooting of such paintings is paid not only by independent sponsors: there is also a state order. There are times when Chinese historical films were shot for sponsors' money, but if they turned out to be worthwhile, during the installation they were bought out by the television studio.

The Chinese testimonies indicate that a lot of films have been created about the times of the Tang, Han, Sun, Ming, Qing dynasties, and they do not take pictures that would tell the Epoch of the five dynasties and sixteen states, as well as the history of Tibet. This is because all Chinese historical films must correspond to the current ideology of the country.

High-budget films that do not pretend to be true

Most of these films with a significant budget is withdrawn in partnership with American or European filmmakers and is defined as a Chinese historical thriller. The films shown below correspond to the declared parameters.

A vivid example is the film "Dragon Sword" directed by Daniel Lee with starring Jackie Chan. The cost of the film amounted to 65 million dollars. The colorful narration of the picture acquaints the viewer with the episode of the Han dynasty. The plot is based on the story of how the Roman military leader Lucius and his soldiers in the Western Desert is fighting for China's independence against the emperor of Tiberius.

A similar high-budget blockbuster "Hero" directed by Zhang Yimou and Jeot Lee in the title role narrates about the war of Nameless with the enemies of the emperor.

One of the most expensive is the project "Flowers of War" by the same director Zhang Yimou, whose main role was performed by Christian Bale. The picture reveals the love story of the American undertaker and the young geisha on the background of the events of the war between Japan and China in 1937. The film budget was 94 million dollars. The pictures of co-production deny the traditional foundations of perception, which formed the national Chinese historical films.

Historical series

Trying to identify the best Chinese historical films, you should not discount the TV series. In recent years, Chinese filmmakers shoot a large number of historical series, featuring a dynamic plot and colorful costumes.

The 2015 series "The Legend of Mi Yue" attracts attention. It tells the story of the first-ever Empress Dowager in the history of the country, who during the Battle of the Kingdoms (481-221 BC) was the Emperor's concubine, gave birth to his son, was exiled. Subsequently, having received the support of General Qu and suppressing all the uprisings, she made from the son of the emperor.

Another noteworthy can be recognized as the series "Worthy Empress". He narrates about Wei Zifu, the wife of the Emperor of the Udi dynasty of Western Han, who, being a girl of low birth, was able to become an empress.

Films claiming historical authenticity

The central themes of Chinese cinema are the history of the Communist Party, the revolution, the war between Japan and China in 1937-1946. These subjects cover many Chinese historical war films.

Among these works can be called "Founding of the party." He narrates about the history of the Chinese Communist Party, covering the period of the First Chinese Revolution of 1911. The picture touches upon the episodes of the biography of the first leader of the country, Mao Zedong.

The film "Nanjing 1937" tells of the sad pages of the war between Japan and China. It describes the fate of refugees during the defense of the city and its seizure by Japanese troops.

Everyone knows the Nuremberg trial - the trial of the leaders of fascist Germany, guilty of the death of millions of people. Few people in Europe know the Tokyo trial of Japanese war criminals during the war of 1937-1946. The film "The Tokyo Process" tells about this episode of world history.

Are Chinese historical films interesting to European audiences?

Most of the films about the history of China are based on the mentality of the country's people, who grew up on the ideas of the Communist Party, the greatness of the country. Therefore, the cinema of this trend, popular inside the country, does not enjoy the special love of the audience beyond its borders. The way out of this situation is the tendency of the production of motion pictures with the involvement of directors from Europe and the United States. Such films, without pretending to the historical truth, attract the viewer with exoticism, dynamic plot, beauty of costumes and surrounding landscapes.