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The Road Home | 
 enlarge | Director: Yimou Zhang
Actors: Ziyi Zhang, Honglei Sun, Hao Zheng, Yulian Zhao, Bin Li
Studio: Sony Pictures
Category: Video
List Price: $14.95
Buy Used: $2.96
You Save: $11.99 (80%)
New (2) Used (13) Collectible (1) from $2.96
Rating:  107 reviews
Sales Rank: 971
Format: Color, Dts Surround Sound, Subtitled, Ntsc
Languages: English (Subtitled), Cantonese (Original Language)
Rating: G (General Audience)
Media: VHS Tape
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 89
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 0767858298
UPC: 043396057142
EAN: 9780767858298
ASIN: B00005QFF1
Theatrical Release Date: 2001
Release Date: April 30, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Former library copy. Has a sticker on it.
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
At the start of the most recent film from Chinese director Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou, Shanghai Triad), a young man returns to his native village after the death of his father, the village's schoolteacher, who died while trying to raise money for a new schoolhouse. His body is in a neighboring town; the young man's mother insists that it be brought back on foot, lest his spirit not find his way home. From this starting point, the young man recounts the tale of his parents' courtship, which involved a red banner, mushroom dumplings, a colorful barrette, and a broken bowl. The Road Home is beautifully filmed, particularly the luminous face of Zhang Ziyi (from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), whose performance is a heartrending portrait of hope and yearning. A simple but deeply emotional film. --Bret Fetzer
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| Customer Reviews: Read 102 more reviews...
 Wonderfully Sweet, Simple Love Story That Captures the Heart August 23, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
With all of the complex love stories that come out of Hollywood these days, you sometimes enjoy the refreshing feeling of a love story that is simple. I am not necessarily stating that one is better than the other, but you often find that many complex love stories just don't completely work. The Road Home is a beautiful, simple love story that is as simple as the time and location in which it takes place, and the pieces fit together like a simple jigsaw puzzle.
The son of Zhao Di has come home to the village where is mother is from. He learns that his father has passed away. While the son grew up in the village, he has spent much of his adult life in the city. He has come home to be with his mother and to help her makes plans for his father's burial. His mother insists that his father be walked from the city hospital back to the village. Understand that this is no easy task since the village is good distance from the city. Her son tries to talk her out of it, but she is adament. And it is in the re-telling of how Zhao Di met her husband that convinces both the son and audience to understand why she wants to walk her husband back to the village.
The film takes off from here as the talented Zhang Ziyi portrays the young Zhao Di. She is an eighteen year-old girl living with her blind mother. She is a beautiful young woman with many suitors wishing for her hand in marriage. She has turned them all down. We don't know why except that we can guess that she hasn't found what she's looking for in a husband. Enter Luo, the new school teacher who has come to the village after living in the city. Zhao Di is immediately captivated upon first seeing him.
The sweetness in this film is in the simplicity of the village and the time. Water must be fetched from nearby wells. Looms are used to make clothing and cloths. And even the "courtship" that is done more by Zhao Di than by Luo is sweetly simple. She uses her culinary talents to make the best dishes with the hope that Luo will eat from her dish. She waits by the road for one glimpse of Luo. She walks to the well that is near the school for the chance that she might see or hear Luo.
People often make the mistake that the more primitive a technological country, the more unhappy the people must be. And yet,Zhao Di is not an unhappy girl. She is an excellent cook, and she enjoys looking after her mother. You get the sense that she does this not out of a sense of duty, but because she wants to. Zhao Di never lives anywhere else but in the village. The village is where she is happy.
Zhang Ziyi is simply brilliant is capturing the sweetness and determination of Zhao Di. She portrays Zhao Di with a fierce persistence to win the heart of Luo at any cost. You will see several scenes in which she demonstrates this.
I must mention the cinematography. The locations and colors that are captured reveal an almost magical world with golden leaves on the birch trees and snow-swept hills of winter.
Director Yimou Zhang does a great job of incorporating the technology of the time period. In many ways, I was as captivated by the use of the loom, the sweatbox used for cooking dumplings, and the walk to the well as I was of the sweet love story. I like his use of black and white in the future, and then the use of color for the past. Most directors would do it the other way around. And yet the color used for the past seems to show that it is revealing a happier time when young Zhao Di was in the fullness of her life, and the black and white showing how life is swiftly coming to an inevitable close for her after the loss of her one true love.
The Road Home will capture your heart with its story and your eyes with its images. Many saints, masters, and philosophers over the course of the centuries have stated that love is actually very simple; it is we who make it complex. This beautiful film seems to truly capture that idea.
 A Shining Star Emerges July 13, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
For generations, filmgoers have used the phrase "Betty Davis Eyes" to describe the ineluctable power that a charismatic actress can wield over an audience. With this film, we have seen the launching of the phenomenon that will one day be call "Zhang Zi Yi Eyes." With a vividness reminiscent of Deborah Winger in "Terms of Endearment" Zhang embodies all the hopes, yearnings and passion that young village girls have learned not to express openly. She can say it only with her eyes, and she does. This is a simple tale, but one that holds the viewer, because it talks of things that are most vital -- literally the future of two people whose love for each other never wavers, and whose belief in their future binds them tightly. The atmosphere is real, the action is genuine and the emotions are ones to which we can all relate. This was the beginning of what has become a great career and makes it abundantly clear why Zhang has become such a huge star.
The Road Home May 6, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
One of the best movies I have ever seen. Very moving. For english speaking viewers, you really must watch it in Chinese and read all subtitles to truly appreciate it. A movie about love and dedication, not an action movie. Beautiful outdoor scenes. You wonder why US film makers can't make movies like this. The movie is slow moving at times, but with a purpose, building true appreciation for the characters. Liked it so much I have purchased the dvd for family members as gifts.
Everything And More April 17, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I had high expectations, for this film, and it did not disappoint me. A very warm hearted story and one that will stay with you. I highly recommend this film for anyone who can appreciate a story about human emotions and devotion.
very very sad but it's my best movie January 9, 2007
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
that is the best romanc movie i have ever seen
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