| Chinese film, as a major component of Chinese contemporary art and culture, evidenced profoundly significant developments during the 1970's and 1980's. In terms of aesthetics, the traditional and single dramatized pattern was broken down, and modern and diversified styles were established. In terms of ideology, it changed from a propaganda tool of the Communist Party to a medium with various voices. This research has addressed this significant subject and explored the pivotal developments of Chinese film from the Cultural Revolution to the New Era (1966-1989) with a focus on their relationship with politics and ideology. Also, it has investigated how the various social forces and cultural ideologies shaped the history of Chinese filmmaking. In this study, the historical developments of The Cultural Revolution (1966-1976): (1) The films with the theme of "class struggle" (1973-1974); (2) The films of "going against the Capitalist Road-takers"(1975-1976); The Transition Period (1976-1978): (3) The films of "going against the Gang of Four"(1977-1978); The New Era (1979-1989): (4) The films of "political wounds" and Xie Jin mode (1979-the early 1980's); (5) The New Wave of the Fifth Generation (the middle 1980's); (6) The Entertainment Film (the late 1980's).; From these developments, we can see that during the last twenty years, the ideologies of Chinese film went through many tremendous changes. The political theme moved from the center to the edge. The moral theme shifted from the positive side to the negative side. The sexual theme became the central one instead of the totally excluded one. These developments in Chinese film not only indicated the various social and cultural pressures which Chinese film industry withstood, but also, in turn, affected and shaped the society and culture. In addition, this research includes a brief survey of the developments of Chinese film education during this period reflecting the same perspective. |
