If Paul Rotha was going to be fired, he was going to be fired by the best. In the early years of his career, while working as an assistant designer for Hitchcock, Rotha published a scathing article on the stagnation of British film. The future master of suspense was not impressed. Hitchcock canned Ro

British documentary movement, Egalitarian, Gritty, Political, Sincere

When people look at Joan Chen, an irresistible urge to see her as the perfect china doll overcomes them, whether they are Chinese themselves or hail from the West. Chen's lifelong battle has been to act her way out of that porcelain persona, and to wrest the director's chair from the hands of those w

Intense, Pathos, Pioneering, Political, Sexy

It was only a matter of time before Chen Kaige, the child of a film director and an actress, pissed off the authorities in China. His fascination with sex, opium, costumes, and the individual in society exposed him as a romantic and a maverick. Chen's characters burst at the seams with personality. P

Dramatic, Epic, Huge, Mainland chinese (the 5th generation), Political, Sensual

Zhang Yimou was in secondary school when the Cultural Revolution exploded in China in 1966. Since his father had served in the old guard, Zhang was sent immediately to the countryside to begin ten years of education (or hard labor) in the fields. While his hands churned the soil, his mind turned to d

Elegant, Epic, Hypnotic, Lyrical, Mainland chinese (the 5th generation), Political, Rebel