A change of pace for Zhang Yimou and his leading lady Gong Li. Its central
story - a peasant woman's implacable quest for justice - mirrors
Zhang's own lengthy struggle to gain admission to film school in the
1970s. It has a documentary feel, but is no less compelling than the
sumptuous visual feasts he's famous for, built as it is on his keen
awareness of human pride, power and status games. Stripped of her usual
glamour, Gong Li responds with a performance of stubborn dignity.
