Zhang Yimou and Gong Li: ACMI screens the work of a mythic partnership

By Philippa Hawker
Updated March 5 2015 - 4:14pm, first published 4:03pm
Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's The Story of Qiu Ju, which the director rates as his finest performance. Photo: Philippa Hawker
Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's The Story of Qiu Ju, which the director rates as his finest performance. Photo: Philippa Hawker
Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's The Story of Qiu Ju, which the director rates as his finest performance. Photo: Philippa Hawker
Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's The Story of Qiu Ju, which the director rates as his finest performance. Photo: Philippa Hawker
Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's The Story of Qiu Ju, which the director rates as his finest performance. Photo: Philippa Hawker
Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's The Story of Qiu Ju, which the director rates as his finest performance. Photo: Philippa Hawker
Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's The Story of Qiu Ju, which the director rates as his finest performance. Photo: Philippa Hawker
Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's The Story of Qiu Ju, which the director rates as his finest performance. Photo: Philippa Hawker

The relationship between director and muse is a powerful element of cinematic mythology, and in a season called Epic Intimacy, the Australian Centre for the Moving Image highlights one of the longest and most varied examples, the collaboration between director Zhang Yimou and actress Gong Li. After a break of several years, they have made a new film together, Coming Home, which will be released in Australia later this year. ACMI's season opens with a single screening of this new movie, but its emphasis is on other films that define the partnership.

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