Name: Zhua zhuang ding
Genre: Drama
Duration: 1 h 36 min
Rating: 7.6
Cast: Ge Chen, Ping Lei, Hua Shao

The literal translation of the title of this movie is: drafting the conscripts by force.

This movie paints an accurate picture of how the nationalist army get their soldiers in the pre-revolutionary era China.  There really is not much political propaganda in this movie and everything is exactly as it had happened in real life.

However, audience are easily fooled if they believe that this is not a political propaganda, the trick is Time, i.e., the time it was released. This movie was made in 1963, the last year of massive famine which was the direct result of Mao's disastrous Great Leap Forward political movement. The massive famine resulted in ten of millions of death in the three years of the so-called "Difficult era" by Chinese government, and as a result, movies like this was made to divert public attention away.  This is why this movie is a political propaganda.

Mandarin-language cinema across Mainland China, Taiwan, and Singapore explores historical reflection, cultural identity, and personal sacrifice, often expressed through poetic visuals and sweeping narratives. In Mainland China, this takes the form of allegory and large-scale epics that reflect on national history. Taiwan emphasizes intimate modernist realism, generational change, and the search for identity. Singapore contributes stories of migration, multiculturalism, and the negotiation of tradition in a globalized city.

The drama genre is a broad category that features stories portraying human experiences, emotions, conflicts, and relationships in a realistic and emotionally impactful way. Dramas delve into the complexities of human life, often exploring themes of love, loss, morality, societal issues, personal growth, with the aim to evoke an emotional response from the audience by presenting relatable and thought-provoking stories.

Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)

Forcible conscription of Nationalist Army in Sichuan, southwest China, during the Anti-Japanese War.

The Biggest Movies and TV Coming in September

See which big screen releases you can watch from the comfort of your couch.

Theatrical Releases Coming to Streaming

Get a closer look at these actors from their many TV and streaming series roles.

The Conscription

Photos1

Top Cast8

User reviews1

Related interests

Storyline

Top picks

Details

Tech specs

Contribute to this page

More to explore

Recently viewed