AVClub: Back in the ’80s and ’90s, before he reinvented himself as an action filmmaker (Hero, House Of Flying Daggers, The Flowers Of War), Zhang Yimou specialized in female-centric melodramas, usually with a strong political bent. Gong Li was his muse during this period—she starred in his first seven features—and the end of their personal and professional relationship, following 1995’s Shanghai Triad, likewise marked the end of that phase of Zhang’s career, during which every new film constituted a major world-cinema event. Zhang and Gong briefly reconciled for 2006’s historical epic Curse Of The Golden Flower, but Coming Home, their latest collaboration, marks the first time in two decades that they’ve attempted to revisit their mutual heyday. It’s a less pointed and implicitly feminist work than such classics as Raise The Red Lantern and The Story Of Qiu Ju—one could even call it a shameless weepie. Still, it’s a welcome throwback to one of the most emotionally wrenching actor-director partnerships in film history.
Comingsoon
Take a look at what's coming home the week of July 4, 2017. Plus, go behind the scenes with an exclusive clip from this week's The Zookeeper's Wife.
The Hollywood Reporter
Jessica Kaye stars as a troubled young woman coming home to Belize for what turns out to be a funeral in this drama, co-written and directed by Kaye herself and Laura E. Davis.
EW
Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou’s career behind the camera has unfolded in almost parallel fashion with that of his most famous muse in front of it, Gong Li. The director and his luminous leading lady both made their movie debuts with the 1987 art-house hit, Red Sorghum. Now, nearly three decades (and several brilliant collaborations) later, the pair has reunited for the heart-rending romance Coming Home. Like tributaries flowing side by side, these two seem to be at their strongest—and deepest—when they run together.
