MOVIE · 1991

Raise the Red Lantern

DramaRomance125 min

In 1920s China, Gong Li is Songlian, a 19-year-old who becomes the fourth wife of a wealthy lord and enters a household ruled by ritual, rank, and her husband's shifting favor. With three wives already established, every privilege becomes part of a quiet contest as Songlian learns the rules of a marriage built on hierarchy. Saifei He is among the women she must live beside and compete with, each navigating the same enclosed world of status, resentment, and watchful scrutiny. Within the walls of the mansion, small gestures and household customs carry the weight of open conflict.