Rating: 
Summary: Buddha's Teaching On Emptiness
Review: A young blind musician is promised by his master that he will
be able to see once he has broken one thousand strings while playing his chinese banjo. Now an old man, he wanders through Chinese village with a young apprentice (who is also blind), playing for villagers who treat him as a saint.When he breaks the 1000th string, there is no miracle for his eyes; however, he does "see" that each one is led through life by an illusion that suffering will miraculously disappear one day. His young apprentice also has been disillusioned by the death of his lover. Faced with the emptiness of life, the two have different reactions. The old man first becomes angry but then goes back to singing the same old songs about how one day we will not sing from sadness but from joy. It would seem that he has gathered that in the same way as he needed the myth of the 1000 broken strings to get through life with hope, so too do most people need
a myth to carry them through life. The young apprentice, on the other hand, chooses death and jumps from the same cliff that brought death to his beloved. This movie is about as happy as reading Schopenhauer. However, there is something liberating about confronting our mortality. When we do so, we can finally begin living instead of devoting so much energy to "covering up" death. This idea was not really explored in the movie though. As in all Chinese cinema there is wonderful camerawork and scenery; the songs are beautiful and haunting. I would have given 5 stars, except the director attempted to add some minimalist touches to this movie which seemed forced and, in any case, did not completely work.
Rating:
Summary: Buddha's Teaching On Emptiness
Review: A young blind musician is promised by his master that he will
be able to see once he has broken one thousand strings while playing his chinese banjo. Now an old man, he wanders through Chinese village with a young apprentice (who is also blind), playing for villagers who treat him as a saint. When he breaks the 1000th string, there is no miracle for his eyes; however, he does "see" that each one is led through life by an illusion that suffering will miraculously disappear one day. His young apprentice also has been disillusioned by the death of his lover. Faced with the emptiness of life, the two have different reactions. The old man first becomes angry but then goes back to singing the same old songs about how one day we will not sing from sadness but from joy. It would seem that he has gathered that in the same way as he needed the myth of the 1000 broken strings to get through life with hope, so too do most people need
a myth to carry them through life. The young apprentice, on the other hand, chooses death and jumps from the same cliff that brought death to his beloved. This movie is about as happy as reading Schopenhauer. However, there is something liberating about confronting our mortality. When we do so, we can finally begin living instead of devoting so much energy to "covering up" death. This idea was not really explored in the movie though. As in all Chinese cinema there is wonderful camerawork and scenery; the songs are beautiful and haunting. I would have given 5 stars, except the director attempted to add some minimalist touches to this movie which seemed forced and, in any case, did not completely work.
Rating: 
Summary: Stunning Movie Making
Review: Chen Kaige is special. Hollywood has nobody like him. While most movies these days seem obsessed with special effects, Chen Kaige shows how a master movie maker can create a masterpiece with seemingly so little. Acting is superb, photography quite breathtaking and the music will haunt you for weeks after the movie has finished. If you like other Kaige movies like Temptress Moon and Farewell My Concubine, chances are you will love this.
Rating:
Summary: Eyes of the soul always pull the strings of life
Review: Chen Kaige's Life on a String is an interesting drama about a blind musician and his young student in past times of China. Master and student travels through the countryside depending only each other in harsh conditions. Master however is hailed as a saint in villages and highly respected. He dreams of being able to see after breaking the 1000th string on his instrument which is told him by his master when he was very very young.
His student however is different than him, more focused on life itself, and a villager girl who has an eye on him makes issues even more complex and thus causing trouble between 2 man.
Life on string is an early work of Chen Kaige and many people will find it long, heavy and basicly very boring. Film demands your attention fully focused on it and requires your patience.
You need to sit back and watch it peacefully without disruption. It is nearly 2 hours long and you wont see much action here apart from some sad twists of life. But such experience is difficult to comeby these days. Kaige's way of telling the story is nothing less than amazing with great takes of Chinese landscape; the wastelands, furious rivers, small towns and temples. Camera work and cinephotography is amazing and acting is good.Zhong yuan Liu's portrayal of the old blind master who can even ends fighting between clans with his instrument. Of course there is traditional Chinese music and songs which creates a great atmosphere by simply elevating the masters "saint" status while he wa singing.
Story questions life itself, asking what is actually seeing and do we see everything by our eyes only? Although master and the student are both blind they actually are aware of every situation around them and use the eyes of their hearts and souls to see. "2 princes fell to earth from heaven" as master says to his student. God of heaven sent his soldiers to shut their eyes so they could not see the evil and dirt of the earth. Both musicians are pure in one sense having none of earthly desires but one : to be able to see which they already know but unaware.
We see it through may examples like in the scenes where master watches a waterfall blindly while a small rainbow graces this beautiful view. Film also has many philosophic underlines and religious background like God of death appearing in man's form
keeping an eye on the old master, refusing to take any money from him, gracing his food with a burning sauce, preparing freshest noodles for the brave traveller only.When master asks about him an answer comes without hesitation: He is the boss, one and only.
Overall it is a difficult long film by Kaige and should not be mixed by his later work. But although it is demanding, it is also very very promising in terms of beauty of cinema as an art. You need to watch life on a string not only with your eyes but with your heart and soul as well. A beautiful example of cinema as a visual art that always touch the senses like nothing else.
Rating: 
Summary: Empty like the Northwest China Setting
Review: I have watched many Asian movies the past 4 years. Some such as "To Live," "King of Masks," "Eat, Drink, Man, Woman," I have watched many times because of the high quality of screenplay and acting. On the other hand, other than views of awesome expanses of northwest China that appear from time to time, there is nothing to hold the attention in this movie. The dialogue is sporadic and is coupled with long periods of silence where next to nothing of interest is going on. There is some attempt at being mystical in this movie that just ends up being dull. I would give this the lowest rating of any Asian film I have seen.
Rating:
Summary: great unusual movie with a haunting, very useful message
Review: I read some of the one star reviews complaining that the movie was as empty as the northeast of China. To that I can only say: if you are empty, I guess you will find emptyness. So, this movie is not for the fans of "actionpacked" Hollywood fare - those are the movies I would call empty... you feel like you're just watching the same movie over and over again, because Hollywood makes movies by recepy. If you're looking for something new and different with a deeper meaning, you may like this movie a lot. I had no problem understanding what was going on, but then I wasn't raised on movies that spoon feed every bit of a poor plot to you. This movie's beauty and haunting message is something I would not want to miss from my collection of experiences.
Rating:
Summary: great unusual movie with a haunting, very useful message
Review: I read some of the one star reviews complaining that the movie was as empty as the northeast of China. To that I can only say: if you are empty, I guess you will find emptyness. So, this movie is not for the fans of "actionpacked" Hollywood fare - those are the movies I would call empty... you feel like you're just watching the same movie over and over again, because Hollywood makes movies by recepy. If you're looking for something new and different with a deeper meaning, you may like this movie a lot. I had no problem understanding what was going on, but then I wasn't raised on movies that spoon feed every bit of a poor plot to you. This movie's beauty and haunting message is something I would not want to miss from my collection of experiences.
Rating:
Summary: It's the imagery
Review: If you're looking for something with a threadbare plot and outstanding performances, then this isn't your kind of movie.
"Life on a String" is gorgeous, with the kind of stunning imagery one would expect from a Chen Kaige film. I cannot praise the feel of this movie enough. The camerawork, the cinematography, and the way the music melts in with the moods... These are all reasons I keep returning to Chinese filmmakers, and you'll find all of it here.
The direction itself can be a bit over the top, though. Characters move like they're being portrayed through puppets rather than actors, and things in general get exaggeratedly symbolic at times. I like Chen more when he's being atmospheric as opposed to intellectual, because his style is so obvious that the metaphors become blunt objects smacked across your head -- instead of soft, subtle clues you have to look for. Storywise, String is closer to "Together" than "Farewell my Concubine" or "Temptress Moon," but maintaining the operatic elements that Chen's plots often carry. You'll find the grandiose statements, the slaps across the cheek and the intense exits here too. The pace is contemplative rather than slow, meaning you'll have lots of time to take in the lovely cinematography without ever becoming bored.
Oh, and there have been some warnings against the quality of the DVD. If you're a fan of Chen Kaige or contemporary Chinese cinema, then you won't let that discourage you. It's really not as bad as some would have it, but I wouldn't turn down a better version either (one with more extras). Now the real problem remains: when are we going to get "Yellow Earth" on DVD?
Rating:
Summary: beautiful film/flawed transfer
Review: Kaige's work with symbolism and emotion is superb.I initially saw this movie on VHS after reading Hoberman's review in the Village Voice. The pacing is fairly fast, given the length of the story, the activity moves right along. Those folks not use to movies outside the mainstream might feel ackward but give it a chance. At the same time Kino Video has done an atrocious job with the video transfer. The initial 10 minutes the frame shakes and jerks and I guarantee that's not from the original. The resolution is overly grainy, someone else needs to redo the remaster, because this awesome screen parable deserves it.
Rating:
Summary: the saddest Chinese movie ever
Review: Let's face facts folks, Chinese movies are not known for being upbeat, but this is really quite the saddest Chinese movie I have ever seen. If the dialogue is bland to some, certainly the cinematography is moving enough to warrant buying the film. To me, the story was more about wishes and realties, and the wisdom to know the difference between the two. The viewer keeps rooting for the two protagonists, the blind singer and his protege, but the stark reality of life's harshness keep interrupting what could be a happy outcome. Nevertheless, the film will keep you guessing, and anyone who says it is boring should stick to movies like "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," because this one is definitely more for the hard core Chinese film fan who is willing to sit through a quiet, moving story to achieve a thoughful state of mind at its end.
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