The Herdsman

The Herdsman

1982 · 103 min · ★ 7.6 · Drama, Romance

In 1980, Xu Jingshan, a wealthy Chinese-American businessman returns to China to find his son, Xu Lingjun, whom he had abandoned over 30 years earlier. Labeled a rightist because of his capitalist father, Lingjun has been forced to live as a humble herdsman on the grasslands. His bitter life has been transformed by a happy marriage to the wise and beautiful Xiuzhi, and more recently by his rehabilitation by the Party. When he goes to Beijing for their reunion, he discovers his father wants him to work for his chemical company in San Francisco. Lingjun tells the story of his life to his father, as he ponders his future.

Directed by Xie Jin

Your Rating

Cast

Make it a double feature

4h 9m together

Both from Xie Jin.

More from Xie JinSee all →

春节大联欢春节大联欢 · 1956
春节大联欢
★ 10.01956
MovieDocumentary
Strange Tales from a Chinese StudioStrange Tales from a Chinese Studio · 1987
Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio
★ 9.31987
SeriesMystery
Big Li, Little Li and Old LiBig Li, Little Li and Old Li · 1962
Big Li, Little Li and Old Li
★ 8.51962
MovieDramaComedy
Sports gain acceptance among workers at a meat processing plant.
Wreaths at the Foot of the MountainWreaths at the Foot of the Mountain · 1984
Wreaths at the Foot of the Mountain
★ 8.41984
MovieDramaWar
Wreaths at the Foot of the Mountain is a 1984 Chinese film about the life of the soldiers in a PLA army company before, during and after the Sino-Vietnamese War.
An Old Man and His DogAn Old Man and His Dog · 1993
An Old Man and His Dog
★ 8.01993
MovieDrama
An Old Man and His Dog is a 1993 Chinese film directed by Xie Jin.
Qiu JinQiu Jin · 1983
Qiu Jin
★ 8.01983
MovieHistoryDrama
Biopic of Qiu Jin (1877-1907), early Chinese womens’ liberationist and martyred revolutionary.
世纪人生:董竹君传奇世纪人生:董竹君传奇 · 1999
世纪人生:董竹君传奇
★ 8.01999
SeriesFamilyDrama
Hibiscus TownHibiscus Town · 1987
Hibiscus Town
★ 7.91987
MovieDramaHistory
Based on a novel by the same name written by Gu Hua, a melodrama about the life and travails of a young woman who lives through the turmoil of the Cultural Revolution.
ChunmiaoChunmiao · 1975
Chunmiao
★ 7.51975
MovieDrama
During the Cultural Revolution, the director of a farm collective studies medicine on her own in order to provide a more effective alternative to the collective's "capitalist" health care clinic, then investigates and exposes a sinister plot by the clinic's staff.
Bell of Purity TempleBell of Purity Temple · 1991
Bell of Purity Temple
★ 7.31991
MovieDrama
In 1945, Japan is defeated in its war of aggression against China. During a panic retreat, a baby boy is abandoned, but is adopted and grows up to become and eminent monk. Thirty years later, he visits China and meets his real mother who is now elderly and weak.
Penitentiary AngelPenitentiary Angel · 1996
Penitentiary Angel
★ 7.01996
MovieDramaCrime
This is a story about seven female prisoners each with different backgrounds, living within the one prison. At the beginning of the story, a new inmate Ding Qing Er arrives with tears streaming down her face, but told that it's too late to cry. The story continues to slowly reveal the lives of the female prisoners, and each of their struggles to have ended up where they are today. There's the mother who's husband keeps giving false promises of taking her and her child to America; the prostitute who was raped; the lesbian who was given up and betrayed by the Red Army; among others, and there's also Qing Er, who is in jail for theft after stealing costly medicine from the hospital for her dying husband. Through the lead of each other and also the kind hearted guards, they learn to form an unbreakable bond, and a way of dignity.
The CradleThe Cradle · 1979
The Cradle
★ 7.01979
MovieDrama
In the early period of China's War of Liberation the Yan'an Nursey which housed the children of the revolutionary fighters had to be evacuated. Li Nan, an army instructor, guides the group of children to the liberated area in the Taihang Mountains and their parents. Made to mark International Children's Year.
A Wave of UnrestA Wave of Unrest · 1955
A Wave of Unrest
★ 7.01955
MovieDrama
The clan law of the Yang family works against the relationships of a widow and her daughter until a new marriage law is enacted after liberation.
YouthYouth · 1977
Youth
★ 7.01977
Movie
After her senses are surgically restored, a formerly deaf mute teenager enlists in the army and is assigned to communications work. But her inexperience with even such simple tasks as answering a telephone lead her supervisor to conclude she is incompetent, and try to have her reassigned. However, a courageous action by another soldier leads him to reevaluate his judgment.
Legend of Tianyun MountainLegend of Tianyun Mountain · 1980
Legend of Tianyun Mountain
★ 6.71980
MovieDrama
When Song Wei's fiancee Luo Qun is denounced as a right-wing traitor by Party official Wu Yao, he is sentenced to ten years' hard labor. Song Wei breaks off her engagement, and eventually marries Wu Yao. Years later, after the Cultural Revolution, political currents have shifted; Song Wei demands that her husband, now a powerful Party official, seek Luo Qun's rehabilitation, but Wu Yao has no desire to open up old political and emotional wounds.
The Red Detachment of WomenThe Red Detachment of Women · 1961
The Red Detachment of Women
★ 6.61961
MovieWarDrama
Wu Qionghua, a house maid, is abused by a cruel warlord until she joins a troop of women soldiers.

More Like This

The King of ComedyThe King of Comedy · 1982
The King of Comedy
★ 7.81982
MovieDramaComedy
Aspiring comic Rupert Pupkin attempts to achieve success in show business by stalking his idol, a late night talk-show host who craves his own privacy.
The Last EmperorThe Last Emperor · 1987
The Last Emperor
★ 7.61987
MovieDramaHistory
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.
Shanghai ExpressShanghai Express · 1932
Shanghai Express
★ 7.01932
MovieDramaRomance
A beautiful temptress re-kindles an old romance while trying to escape her past during a tension-packed train journey.
Marie AntoinetteMarie Antoinette · 2006
Marie Antoinette
★ 6.72006
MovieDramaHistory
A retelling of the story of France’s iconic but ill-fated queen, Marie Antoinette - from her betrothal and marriage to Louis XVI at fifteen to her reign as queen at nineteen and ultimately the fall of Versailles.
The Road HomeThe Road Home · 1999
The Road Home
★ 7.41999
MovieDramaRomance
Prompted by the death of his father and the grief of his mother, a man recalls the story of how they met in flashback.
Red CornerRed Corner · 1997
Red Corner
★ 6.31997
MovieCrimeDrama
An American attorney on business in China, ends up wrongfully on trial for murder and his only key to innocence is a female defense lawyer from the country.
House of Flying DaggersHouse of Flying Daggers · 2004
House of Flying Daggers
★ 7.32004
MovieAdventureDrama
In 9th century China, a corrupt government wages war against a rebel army called the Flying Daggers. A romantic warrior breaks a beautiful rebel out of prison to help her rejoin her fellows, but things are not what they seem.
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the DesertThe Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert · 1994
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
★ 7.31994
MovieDramaComedy
Two drag performers and a transgender woman travel across the desert to perform their unique style of cabaret.
Mildred PierceMildred Pierce · 1945
Mildred Pierce
★ 7.61945
MovieCrimeDrama
A hard-working mother inches towards disaster as she divorces her husband and starts a successful restaurant business to support her spoiled daughter.
Lust, CautionLust, Caution · 2007
Lust, Caution
★ 7.32007
MovieActionDrama
During World War II, a secret agent must seduce, then assassinate an official who works for the Japanese puppet government in Shanghai. Her mission becomes clouded when she finds herself falling in love with the man she is assigned to kill.
The Second Best Exotic Marigold HotelThe Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel · 2015
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
★ 6.42015
MovieDramaComedy
As the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel has only a single remaining vacancy - posing a rooming predicament for two fresh arrivals - Sonny pursues his expansionist dream of opening a second hotel.
Broken Blossoms or The Yellow Man and the GirlBroken Blossoms or The Yellow Man and the Girl · 1919
Broken Blossoms or The Yellow Man and the Girl
★ 6.91919
MovieDramaRomance
A frail waif, abused by her brutal boxer father in London's seedy Limehouse District, is befriended by a sensitive Chinese immigrant with tragic consequences.
M. ButterflyM. Butterfly · 1993
M. Butterfly
★ 6.61993
MovieRomanceDrama
In 1960s China, French diplomat Rene Gallimard falls in love with opera singer Song Liling – but Song is not at all who Gallimard thinks.
The WarriorThe Warrior · 2001
The Warrior
★ 7.02001
MovieHistoryDrama
In 1375, China was in chaos between Yuan Dynasty and Ming Dynasty. Coryo (an ancient kingdom of Korea then) sent a delegation of many diplomats, soldiers and a silent slave to make peace with the new Chinese government. However, this delegation got charged as spies and sent in exile to a remote desert.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter