The 38th China Golden Rooster Awards
Individual Nominations
- Best SoundWang Danrong
- Best CinematographyZhao Fei
Film Nominations
- Special Jury Award
Synopsis
The film centers on the defensive battle of Tieyuan (Cheorwon). In May 1951, the 63rd Army of the Chinese People's Volunteers, having just ended a month of continuous fighting, is ordered to the Tieyuan front to face four divisions of the "United Nations Command" head-on. Through fierce and bloody fighting, the Volunteers finally force the enemy to the negotiating table. To complete their mission, the soldiers of the 63rd Army's 189th Division break up into small units, each man making himself a nail driven firmly into his position. At the battalion position, battalion political instructor Li Xiang (Zhu Yilong) vows not to retreat a single step and holds the line to the death. Under relentless shelling, Li Moyin (Xin Baiqing) and his family of three are reunited on the battlefield. A key and a reunion meal in the trenches bring this family, separated by war, closer together. To build better weapons for the new China, Wu Benzheng (Zhu Yawen), a military engineering expert who has returned from abroad, enters the battlefield under the protection of Zhang Xiaoheng (Ou Hao). As his bodyguard, Zhang Xiaoheng believes that protecting Wu Benzheng means protecting the future of the motherland. Sun Xing (Chen Feiyu) and Yang Sandi (Zhang Youhao) also arrive at Tieyuan. Together, all the officers and soldiers of the 63rd Army build an unbreakable "Iron Great Wall" on the Tieyuan battlefield.
Jury Citation
The Volunteers: The Battle of Life and Death receives the Special Jury Award in recognition of the narrative breakthroughs and industrial leadership it achieves within the framework of major revolutionary and historical subjects. The film presents a grand history from a close-up perspective. By interweaving key battles with individual fates, it goes deep into its characters' inner lives and creates a fully realized ensemble of characters. With devotion to family and country at the core of its narrative, it strikes a balance between historical truth and artistic elevation and demonstrates aesthetic innovation in mainstream war films.
Film Information
Director
Chen Kaige
Genre:
Drama/History/War
Starring:
Zhu Yilong, Xin Baiqing, Zhang Zifeng, Zhu Yawen, Chen Feiyu, Wang Yanhui, Xiao Yang, Wu Jing
Country/Region:
Chinese Mainland
Language:
Mandarin/English
Running Time:
144 min
