''The Herdsman'' () is a

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

Chinese film The cinema of China is one of three distinct historical threads of Chinese-language cinema together with the cinema of Hong Kong and the cinema of Taiwan. Cinema was introduced in China in 1896 and the first Chinese film, '' Dingjun Mountain'' ...

about the life of a herdsman in western China from 1950s through the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goal ...

, and his reunion with his father from America. It was produced by the

Shanghai Film Studio The Shanghai Film Studio (), one of the three biggest film studios in China, is the film division of the Shanghai Film Group Corporation in Shanghai, China. It is responsible for the production of Chinese films and TV programs. History Shangha ...

and directed by

Xie Jin Xie Jin (; 21 November 1923 – 18 October 2008) was a Chinese film director. He rose to prominence in 1957, directing the film '' Woman Basketball Player No. 5'', and is considered one of the Third Generation directors of China. Most recently h ...

, starring

Zhu Shimao Zhu or ZHU may refer to: * Zhu (surname), common Chinese surnames *Zhu River, or Pearl River, in southern China *Zhu (state), ancient Chinese state, later renamed Zou *House of Zhu, the ruling house of the Ming dynasty in Chinese history *Zhu (str ...

. It is based on a novel by

Zhang Xianliang Zhang Xianliang (; December 1936 – 27 September 2014) was a Chinese novelist, essayist, and poet, and former president of the Chinese Writers Association in Ningxia. He was detained as a political prisoner during the Anti-Rightist Movement in 195 ...

Plot

In autumn of 1980, an elderly

Chinese American Chinese Americans are Americans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans along with their ancestors trace lineage from ...

entrepreneur, Xu Jingyou (

Liu Qiong Liu Qiong (16 October 1913 – 28 April 2002) was a Chinese film director and actor. Selected filmography As director * ''A Fishing Girl Singer'' (1983) * ''Ashima'' (1964) * '' Military Depot No. 51'' (1961) * '' Master Qiao Mounts the Seda ...

), returns to China, and finds his son, Xu Lingjun (

), a herdsman working in Chilechuan Ranch in northwestern China. The father wants to take his son to the United States to inherit his assets. However, the junior Xu is very distant with his father. More than 30 years ago, the father had abandoned his wife and son to do business in America. His mother died of disease and Xu becomes an orphan. After graduating from high school, Xu became a teacher. In 1957, he was classified as a "rightist" and sent to work in a ranch in the underdeveloped northwest. In 1962, when the labor penalty was terminated, Xu stayed at the ranch as a herdsman. Due to despair, Xu even attempted to commit suicide. But his fellow ranchers, especially Grandpa and Grandma Dong and Guo Zi, give him the courage and strength to carry on. During Cultural Revolution, Guo Zi and other ranchers protect him from political persecution. In 1972, Xu marries Li Xiuzhi, a village girl who had fled the famine in

Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...

. They give birth to a son, Little Qingqing, and the family lived a carefree life. Xu was rehabilitated in 1979 and returned to his post as a teacher. In the evening when Xu meets his father at the Peking Restaurant, his heart is uneasy. He recalls his past at the ranch and his wife's trust in his returning, which consolidates his decision to stay in China. The senior Xu finally understands his son, and the two resume their kinship. After sending his father home, Xu returns to the ranch and to his friends and family.

Reception

The Herdsman film won Best Supporting Actor (

Niu Ben Zhang Xuejing (张学景, Tianjin, 1935-), stagename Niu Ben (牛犇) is a Chinese film actor. Biography He lost both of his parents at the age of six, then lived with his oldest brother, who worked as a driver at the third film factory in Beij ...

) and Best Editing (

Zhou Dingwen Zhou may refer to: Chinese history * King Zhou of Shang () (1105 BC–1046 BC), the last king of the Shang dynasty * Predynastic Zhou (), 11th-century BC precursor to the Zhou dynasty * Zhou dynasty () (1046 BC–256 BC), a dynasty of China ** West ...

) in 1983 at the 3rd

Golden Rooster Awards The Golden Rooster Awards () are film awards given in mainland China. The awards were originally given annually, beginning in 1981. The name of the award came from the year of the Rooster in 1981. Award recipients receive a statuette in the shap ...

. It also won Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor (

) at the 6th

Hundred Flowers Awards The Hundred Flowers Awards () are, together with the Golden Rooster Awards, the most prestigious film awards honouring the best in Chinese cinema, as well as Hong Kong cinema and the Cinema of Taiwan, they are classified as the Chinese equivale ...

. The film was screened in the

Un Certain Regard (, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films w ...

section at the 1983 Cannes Film Festival.

References

External links

* *
''The Herdsman''
at the Chinese Movie Database 1982 films 1980s Mandarin-language films 1982 drama films Films directed by Xie Jin Shanghai Film Studio films Films based on Chinese novels Chinese drama films {{China-film-stub