# The best Zhang Yimou films

From Red Sorghum to To Live: Zhang Yimou's classics as chosen by fans and the press (Sohu, Sina, Zhihu).

- 1 vote · 12 items
- Jun 14, 2025 · Jie Hu
- https://even.best/en/l/2040/the-best-zhang-yimou-films

## Top 12

1. **Article 20 (2024)** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — A legal drama that grossed over 2.4 billion yuan.
2. **To Live (1994)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Ge You and Gong Li, a family's fate over decades; Grand Prix at Cannes.
3. **Red Sorghum (1987)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — His directing debut, the first Chinese film to win the Golden Bear.
4. **Raise the Red Lantern (1991)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Gong Li's fate inside a wealthy household.
5. **Hero (2002)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — A colour-drenched wuxia epic, Oscar-nominated for foreign film.
6. **The Story of Qiu Ju (1992)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Gong Li seeks justice for her husband; Golden Lion at Venice.
7. **Not One Less (1999)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — A village substitute teacher searches for a missing pupil; Golden Lion at Venice.
8. **The Road Home (1999)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Zhang Ziyi's screen debut, an innocent love story.
9. **Ju Dou (1990)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — A forbidden love in a dye mill; Oscar-nominated.
10. **Shanghai Triad (1995)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Shanghai gangsters and a nightclub singer.
11. **The Flowers of War (2011)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — A church during the Nanjing Massacre.
12. **Shadow (2018)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — An ink-wash style wuxia of court intrigue.

How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.