Red Cherry

Rating:
Summary: Sad and disturbing
Review: A poignant tale of two young Chinese students, fleeing the war in China only to end up in the heart of WW2 in Russia. Very well acted, and a very compelling story. A good film for anyone interested in the Nazi invasion of Russia, and how war can affect teenagers.

Rating:
Summary: red cherry
Review: great work of art. I have watched it more then once and find it entertaining each time. the ending is sad but so was the war

Rating:
Summary: Definitely not a "1 star" film
Review: I almost missed this movies because the strong and negative review from the other Amazon reader. I am glad I took the risk and bough this DVD. It is not a bad film if we put aside our political view point and watch the movies calmly and fairly. Chinese or Russian are entitled to tell their stories from their point of view too.

Rating:
Summary: Have your kids watch this movie
Review: I had my own two daughters (ages 12 and 14) watch this movie. When I say to my girls now "You're so lucky to be born and raised in the United States in this day and age," my girls really understand what I mean.

I have lived and worked in the former Soviet Union, so I'm no fan of communism. But I met many wonderful people there, many of whom suffered horribly during the war at the hands of the Germans as well as at the hands of their own communist zealots. "Red Cherry" may be somewhat one-dimensional as far as not portraying the negatives of communism--but for many Russians and Chinese, the positives of communism were truly felt to outweigh the negatives. The movie was about the Nazis and what they did to ordinary people's lives--it was no more meant to be an even-handed examination of the pros and cons of communism than "Saving Private Ryan" was supposed to be an even-handed examination of capitalism.

Are parts of this movie shocking for children? Yes--seeing a young girl urinate in fear after witnessing her teacher be shot point blank is a shocking scene for young people. But do I want my children growing up like some spoiled American kids thinking that life is always essentially good, and that every person is capable of being reasoned with? That the worst thing that can happen to them is that you won't take them to the store that day to buy, buy, buy? No way! If you watch this movie with your kids, you will have some long, interesting, and worthwhile conversations. I have never written a recommendation for a movie before, but I felt I had to write one after seeing the sneering 1-star reviews by people who display little understanding of life beyond what they've read about in books.

Rating:
Summary: Have your kids watch this movie
Review: I had my own two daughters (ages 12 and 14) watch this movie. When I say to my girls now "You're so lucky to be born and raised in the United States in this day and age," my girls really understand what I mean.

I have lived and worked in the former Soviet Union, so I'm no fan of communism. But I met many wonderful people there, many of whom suffered horribly during the war at the hands of the Germans as well as at the hands of their own communist zealots. "Red Cherry" may be somewhat one-dimensional as far as not portraying the negatives of communism--but for many Russians and Chinese, the positives of communism were truly felt to outweigh the negatives. The movie was about the Nazis and what they did to ordinary people's lives--it was no more meant to be an even-handed examination of the pros and cons of communism than "Saving Private Ryan" was supposed to be an even-handed examination of capitalism.

Are parts of this movie shocking for children? Yes--seeing a young girl urinate in fear after witnessing her teacher be shot point blank is a shocking scene for young people. But do I want my children growing up like some spoiled American kids thinking that life is always essentially good, and that every person is capable of being reasoned with? That the worst thing that can happen to them is that you won't take them to the store that day to buy, buy, buy? No way! If you watch this movie with your kids, you will have some long, interesting, and worthwhile conversations. I have never written a recommendation for a movie before, but I felt I had to write one after seeing the sneering 1-star reviews by people who display little understanding of either Russia, China, or any life outside the ducky USA beyond what they've read about in books.

Rating:
Summary: Definitely Worth Watching!!!
Review: I rarely ever write reviews but seeing 1 star for this movie really disturbed me. So does that mean Schindler's List deserves 1 star also??? Wasn't that a martyr story, too? C'mon people. This is cinema...not a history book.

You are sadly misleading people to think that Red Cherry is an aweful movie. I'm sorry that you were unable to be compelled by the devastation war has on families and friends.

Rating:
Summary: Powerfully and painfully illustrated...........
Review: I recently saw this movie, Red Cherry, and found this movie to be in one sense, powerful; in another, I found it painful. It is based on a true story about two Chinese children who are taken in to a Russian, what appears to be an orphanage. They are taken care of, educated, and assimilate into the culture.

This is a troubled period in history, 1940s. Civil war in China, Germany's military expansion across Europe, Japan's entry into the war. The children, all, are innocent to what is to take place; yet, at the same time, they are inclusive, made a part of the war.

The two Chinese children, boy and girl, undergo hardship. The girl, Chuchu, gets taken in by the German army. She undergoes mental, spiritual, and physical torture. Her silent cries go unheard. What this young lady undergoes violates her innocence, her identity, and scars her.

The boy embraces the Russian ideology, the way of life, and wants to defend Russian against German occupation. He, too, is young, innocent, and, in the end also endures a tragedy.

This movie, in so few words, is worth every minute of its viewing. It was powerful.

Diego R. Rodriguez
Chicago, Illinois

Rating:
Summary: Revolutionary Martyr Story
Review: In the People's Republic, tales of Japanese atrocities in WWII are still popular. This is a little different because it's about German atrocities in WWII. The story reminded me of a medieval story of a Christian martyr. The Germans do leer in this movie; the victims are pure in heart, and true revolutionary comrades. All in all, a boring propaganda movie.

It's in color, and in focus. Very little of the dialogue is in Chinese. Most of the actors speak German or Russian.

Rating:
Summary: A Black and White Film in Color.
Review: In this film you can most definately tell the good guys from the bad guys. You will recognize the stereotypes right away. The German Nazis and KMT are depicted as evil, sadistic villians (how original, but dissapointing not to see chocolate drooling from their leering mouths while they randomly gunned down or hacked their victims to death). Meanwhile, to your great surprise, you will discover that the glorious Chinese and Russian comrades are depicted as kind, brave, clean and reverent. If you really like this kind of propagandistic drivel, then this is just the film for you. Otherwise you will probably want to look elsewhere for a film that shows a more balanced view of that bleak period in history when Hitler and Stalin were playing chess with the lives of millions, including one unfortunate Chinese girl. The Red Cherry may be "red" alright, but it is mainly a monochromatic film.

Seeing how the film was ever so popular in Palm Springs and Shanghai, it must have some merits, right? Guo Ke-Yu did nicely in the wet hanky scenes and the photography was pretty good. But aside from that, I would pick Sergei Eisenstein over Ye Ying any day when it comes to a propaganda film.

Rating:
Summary: The horrors of war and the real scars that will last forever
Review: This 1995 Chinese film is based on actual accounts of WW2 survivors and is a testament to the horrors of war. It opens in 1940 when a young Chinese boy and girl are sent to a Russian school. There is a civil war going on in China and their parents have killed by the Nationalists. They are welcomed by their Russian comrades and the first half hour of the film is about their idyllic existence with kind teachers and an atmosphere of acceptance and learning. We see the youngsters enjoying childhood pranks and we smile at their antics.

Then the world suddenly changes. The Nazis invade Russia. And the children of the school become the victims of abject cruelty. Some of them are murdered, all of them are starving and there are moments of heroism as well as horror. The two Chinese children suffer, as do the Russians. The boy becomes a street urchin and eventually he performs some courageous acts against the enemy. The girl works as a virtual slave in a monastery that has been taken over by the Nazis. The commander sees himself as an artist and forces her to have an ugly tattoo glorifying the nazi regime on her back. When the Nazis are defeated she suffers the emotional shame of this.

This film has won many accolades including an Oscar nomination. I add my own accolades. It is beautifully photographed, well paced and horrifying to watch the innocence of the children despoiled. I wanted to hug the children and save them all. I felt their hunger and their shame and their will to survive. I applauded the small acts of heroism. And I wanted to reach out my arms and save these children.

This film is not for everyone. The war is depicted in gruesome reality. And even after the war ends, we understand that its scars will last forever.

Highly recommended, but be prepared to be upset by its theme.