Raise the Red Lantern (1991)
大红灯笼高高挂
China, 1920. One Master, Four Wives.
Keywords
Raise the Red Lantern rating: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic
IMDb8.1/10· 38K votes
Rotten Tomatoes97%
TMDb7.919/10· 799 votesWith 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, backed by 8.1/10 on IMDb, critical reception of this film has been very positive.
About Raise the Red Lantern
In 1920s China, 19-year-old Songlian becomes a concubine of a powerful lord and is forced to compete with his three wives for the privileges gained.
Cast of Raise the Red Lantern
Gong Li
as Songlian
He Saifei
as Meishan
Cao Cuifen
as Zhuoyun
Kong Lin
as Yan'er
- Z
Zhao Qi
as Housekeeper
Jin Shuyuan
as Yuru
Ma Jingwu
as Chen Zuoqian
Cui Zhigang
as Doctor Gao
- C
Chu Xiao
as Feipu
Cao Zengyin
as Old Servant
Ding Weimin
as Songlian's Mother
Raise the Red Lantern facts
- Original title
- 大红灯笼高高挂
- Budget
- $1M
- Box office
- $16.6M
Our take on Raise the Red Lantern
Zhang Yimou's 1991 masterpiece follows a young woman who becomes the fourth concubine of a wealthy 1920s Chinese lord, forced into a silent, ritualised war for his favour. Exquisitely composed and quietly furious, it turns a gilded household into a prison of patriarchy. If its visual splendour and slow-burning tragedy gripped you, seek out richly shot period dramas about women trapped by power and tradition.
Ranked by the iRankMovies editorial teamUpdated August 2026MethodologyData sources
Audience opinions
What the audience liked
- •Zhang Yimou transforms intimate domestic drama into grand visual statement on oppression
- •Concubine competition explores female agency within patriarchal constraint and manipulation
- •1920s setting reflects historical reality while remaining timeless in thematic resonance
What the audience disliked
- •Slow visual style emphasizes aesthetic beauty over narrative momentum and character growth
- •Oppressive atmosphere may feel relentlessly grim without sufficient emotional counterpoint
Trailer
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