Zhang Hongmei

Said to be the first science-fiction film produced in China (and perhaps having its North American theatrical premiere in Future Imperfect?), Death Ray on Coral Island spares no bile, camp, or latent envy in portraying America as the cunning archenemy that will stop at nothing—industrial espionage, assassinations, even ballroom dancing—to steal China’s futuristic weaponry. The film occupies a pivotal moment in China’s modern history, representing a legacy of the Great Cultural Revolution and a harbinger of the nation’s ascension on the global economic stage. Courtesy of the China Film Archive and Shanghai Film Group.

Open details →

Steelworker Ding Da-gan suffered severe burns in an accident. The victim's condition was almost hopeless, but people from all over the country rallied to save Ding Da-gan's life, and death receded.

Open details →

Kind people help bring little Lan-Lan and her brother Dong-Dong to Beijing to their parents.

Open details →

The passenger ship Haiyan, with more than a thousand people aboard, sails through a thick fog at night. Despite having the knowledge that there are reefs nearby, the captain refuses to stop or slow down.

Open details →

The life and work of Chinese bacteriologists. The film is based on the theme of profound psychological changes in a person's character, who, under the influence of many factors of life and situations, has to change his view of the world and science. One of the characters, Professor Huang, is shown in the process of development and formation. His character is vivid and memorable. If at the beginning of the film the young scientists seemed insufficiently serious to Huang, and he regarded all their aspirations to enter science as a sign of their lack of understanding of the complexity of science and their responsibility, by the end of the film Huang already sees in the young graduate students courage, daring, and a desire to achieve an active intrusion of science into life. The theme of friendship and mutual respect among scientists united by a common goal—serving the people—plays an important emotional role in the film.

Open details →

In the mid-19th century, at the height of the Opium War, the Chinese people rose up against the feudal system and the Manchu dynasty, which had capitulated to foreign invaders. ... With their heads bowed, peasants in chains trudge along, those who refused to give money to crush their rebellious brothers. Suddenly, their path is blocked. It is Song Jing-shi who has come to their rescue with his detachment. The freed peasants joined Song Jing-shi. This is how the core of the Black Flag Army was formed. The first historical film made in socialist China in the 1950s. The script is based on authentic material collected in villages in Shandong Province. Legends about the cruelty of Sen Gelinzin and the bravery of Sun Jing-shi, who is called the "Chinese Spartacus," still live on among the people.

Open details →