Chen Kaige

Directing

Chen Kaige

Born 1952-08-12 · Beijing, China

Chen Kaige (陈凯歌) is a Chinese film director born on born August 12, 1952. He is a leading figure of the fifth generation of Chinese cinema. His films are known for their visual flair and epic storytelling.

Acting credits

The Last Emperor poster
7.6

A dramatic history of Pu Yi, the last of the Emperors of China, from his lofty birth and brief reign in the Forbidden City, the object of worship by half a billion people; through his abdication, his decline and dissolute lifestyle; his exploitation by the invading Japanese, and finally to his obscure existence as just another peasant worker in the People's Republic.

The Last Emperor

1987

The Emperor and the Assassin poster
6.9

In pre-unified China, the King of Qin sends his concubine to a rival kingdom to produce an assassin for a political plot, but as the king's cruelty mounts she finds her loyalty faltering.

The Emperor and the Assassin

1998

The Founding of a Republic poster
5.3

The tale of one man who fought against the tyranny of a ruler and led his people in battle in the ultimate sacrifice for his country.

The Founding of a Republic

2009

A Special Day poster
5.3

At the 60th anniversary of Cannes Film Festival, 34 famous directors are followed by camera.

A Special Day

2012

Together poster
6.9

When a violin prodigy Xiaochun and his father head to Beijing seeking fame and fortune, they soon discover a fierce world of cutthroat ambition. But when Xiaochun is "adopted" by a famous music tutor, success finally seems within reach - until a shocking discovery begins to unravel his entire world, and the boy must make the most difficult choice of his life. Can he achieve the fame his father had always hoped for without losing the extraordinary passion that sets him apart?

Together

2002

The Monkey King 3D: Uproar in Heaven poster
7.4

A completely remade animation film based on the original 1961 animation The Monkey King. Mythical ancient China. Born from some magic stones that fell to Earth a long time ago when Goddess Nüwa mended the sky, Sun Wukong, aka Monkey King, sets off on his first adventure to gain a worthy weapon. This earns the attention of the Jade Emperor of Heaven.

The Monkey King 3D: Uproar in Heaven

2012

New Chinese Cinema poster
NR

Tony Rayns presents the work of the 'Fifth Generation' and other innovative filmmakers who emerged during the 1980s in China.

New Chinese Cinema

1989

Yang ± Yin: Gender in Chinese Cinema poster
5.5

An exploration of Chinese cinema and its relationships with gender and sexuality, which the film argues has been more frankly and provocatively explored than in any other national cinema. Utilizing both film excerpts and interviews with many leading directors and academics, the film examines topics such as male bonding in kung fu movies, depictions of same-sex bonding and physical intimacy, the emphasis on women's grievances in melodramas, and the career of Yam Kim-Fai, a Hong Kong actress who spent her life portraying men on and off the screen.

Yang ± Yin: Gender in Chinese Cinema

1998

Shiny Stars, Rusty Red poster
NR

Meet Wang Yuelun, a young and ambitious Chinese who dreams of becoming a film director. Filmmaker Elisabeth O. Sjaastad follows an eventful year in his quest to fulfill his dream.

Shiny Stars, Rusty Red

2003

Changjin, Changjin poster
NR

A documentary on the making of China's war epic "The Battle at Lake Changjin".

Changjin, Changjin

2022

Behind the camera

Farewell My Concubine poster
7.9

In an epic tale of theater, gender, love and class, two Beijing opera actors navigate political turmoil as their friendship evolves over decades.

Farewell My Concubine

1993

Killing Me Softly poster
5.6

A woman grows suspicious of her controlling husband after she discovers secrets about the women in his past.

Killing Me Softly

2002

To Each His Own Cinema poster
6.4

Commissioned to mark the 60th anniversary of the Cannes Film Festival, "To Each His Own Cinema" brought together 33 of the world's pre-eminent filmmakers to produce short pieces exploring the multifarious facets of cinema and their perspective on the state of their chosen artform in the early 21st century.

To Each His Own Cinema

2007

Legend of the Demon Cat poster
6.2

During the Late Tang Dynasty, a manor is invaded by a demon cat and a sense of unrest befalls the capital of Changan. A poet is charged with investigating the case and meets up with a monk. The two work together and pull apart the thread of clues to reveal a history of truths leading to the events.

Legend of the Demon Cat

2017

Legend of the Demon Cat poster
6.2

During the Late Tang Dynasty, a manor is invaded by a demon cat and a sense of unrest befalls the capital of Changan. A poet is charged with investigating the case and meets up with a monk. The two work together and pull apart the thread of clues to reveal a history of truths leading to the events.

Legend of the Demon Cat

2017

My People, My Country poster
6.6

Anthology of short films directed by several different directors.

My People, My Country

2019

The Battle at Lake Changjin poster
6.3

Korean War, winter 1950. In the frozen and snowy area of Changjin Lake, a bloody battle is about to begin between the elite troops of the United States and China.

The Battle at Lake Changjin

2021

The Promise poster
5.6

An orphaned girl, driven by poverty at such a young age, makes a promise with an enchantress. In return for beauty and the admiration of every man, she will never be with the man she loves. This spell cannot be broken unless the impossible happens: snow falling in spring and the dead coming back to life. Now a grown and beautiful princess, she regrets her promise, for all of the men she's loved has always been met with tragedy.

The Promise

2005

The Promise poster
5.6

An orphaned girl, driven by poverty at such a young age, makes a promise with an enchantress. In return for beauty and the admiration of every man, she will never be with the man she loves. This spell cannot be broken unless the impossible happens: snow falling in spring and the dead coming back to life. Now a grown and beautiful princess, she regrets her promise, for all of the men she's loved has always been met with tragedy.

The Promise

2005

Monk Comes Down the Mountain poster
5.2

A monk leaves his monastery and ventures out into the real world for the first time in his life, and ends up in an adventure with a kung-fu master who is guarding a special artifact.

Monk Comes Down the Mountain

2015

Monk Comes Down the Mountain poster
5.2

A monk leaves his monastery and ventures out into the real world for the first time in his life, and ends up in an adventure with a kung-fu master who is guarding a special artifact.

Monk Comes Down the Mountain

2015

The Emperor and the Assassin poster
6.9

In pre-unified China, the King of Qin sends his concubine to a rival kingdom to produce an assassin for a political plot, but as the king's cruelty mounts she finds her loyalty faltering.

The Emperor and the Assassin

1998

The Emperor and the Assassin poster
6.9

In pre-unified China, the King of Qin sends his concubine to a rival kingdom to produce an assassin for a political plot, but as the king's cruelty mounts she finds her loyalty faltering.

The Emperor and the Assassin

1998

The Emperor and the Assassin poster
6.9

In pre-unified China, the King of Qin sends his concubine to a rival kingdom to produce an assassin for a political plot, but as the king's cruelty mounts she finds her loyalty faltering.

The Emperor and the Assassin

1998

The Battle at Lake Changjin II: Water Gate Bridge poster
6.3

Commander Wu Qianli leads the 7th Infantry Company soldiers to Funchilin Pass where they are tasked to destroy a bridge to stop enemy troops from retreating.

The Battle at Lake Changjin II: Water Gate Bridge

2022

The Battle at Lake Changjin II: Water Gate Bridge poster
6.3

Commander Wu Qianli leads the 7th Infantry Company soldiers to Funchilin Pass where they are tasked to destroy a bridge to stop enemy troops from retreating.

The Battle at Lake Changjin II: Water Gate Bridge

2022

The Volunteers: The Battle of Life and Death poster
6.6

The movie focuses on the battle of Cheolwon, where the 63rd Army of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (CPVA) was ordered to enter the battlefield of Cheolwon in May 1951, just after a month-long battle, to fight against four divisions of the United Nations Army (UNA). The volunteers fought with bloodshed and finally brought the enemy to the negotiation table.

The Volunteers: The Battle of Life and Death

2024

The Volunteers: The Battle of Life and Death poster
6.6

The movie focuses on the battle of Cheolwon, where the 63rd Army of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (CPVA) was ordered to enter the battlefield of Cheolwon in May 1951, just after a month-long battle, to fight against four divisions of the United Nations Army (UNA). The volunteers fought with bloodshed and finally brought the enemy to the negotiation table.

The Volunteers: The Battle of Life and Death

2024

Yellow Earth poster
7.2

A communist soldier is sent to a remote region of China in order to collect folk songs. Staying with a peasant family (a widower with two small children), he discovers a community whose way of life is completely alien to him, but he gradually wins their trust.

Yellow Earth

1984

Yellow Earth poster
7.2

A communist soldier is sent to a remote region of China in order to collect folk songs. Staying with a peasant family (a widower with two small children), he discovers a community whose way of life is completely alien to him, but he gradually wins their trust.

Yellow Earth

1984

Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet poster
6.9

Ten Minutes Older is a 2002 film project consisting of two compilation feature films entitled The Trumpet and The Cello. The project was conceived by the producer Nicolas McClintock as a reflection on the theme of time at the turn of the Millennium. Fifteen celebrated film-makers were invited to create their own vision of what time means in ten minutes of film.

Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet

2002

The Volunteers: Peace at Last poster
8.2

Set during the final phase of the War to Resist U.S. and Aid Korea, the film depicts the tense final battles and simultaneous peace negotiations leading to the armistice, capturing the spirit of perseverance and sacrifice on both the battlefield and the diplomatic front.

The Volunteers: Peace at Last

2025

The Volunteers: Peace at Last poster
8.2

Set during the final phase of the War to Resist U.S. and Aid Korea, the film depicts the tense final battles and simultaneous peace negotiations leading to the armistice, capturing the spirit of perseverance and sacrifice on both the battlefield and the diplomatic front.

The Volunteers: Peace at Last

2025

Temptress Moon poster
6.7

Set in the decadent 1920s, Temptress Moon tells the very complicated story of a wealthy family living on the outskirts of Shanghai. Their youngest daughter, Ruyi, is brought up as a servant to her opium-addicted father and brother. Meanwhile, her brother-in-law Zhongliang has a successful, if illegal, career seducing and blackmailing married women in the city. When he comes to Ruyi's home the two fall in love, and trouble ensues.

Temptress Moon

1996