What Is Mao's Last Dancer

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Mao’s Last Dancer
Mao’s Last Dancer was directed by Bruce Beresford and produced in 2009. The film is a biography and is for audiences from teens to adults. Mao’s Last Dancer is a dramatic romance movie. Mao’s Last Dancer is set throughout China and the United States of America. The film is based upon Li Cunxin’s life and shows anything is possible if you work for it.
The film begins in Houston Texas in 1981; Li Cunxin is greeted at the airport by many excited fans. Li is staying with Houston Ballet teacher Ben Stevenson for three months. Li finds it hard to fit into the American way of life and thinks of what his life back in China was like. Li’s flashbacks show how badly the young children were treated in China and how important Chairman Mao is to the Chinese people. As time goes by Li begins to like it in America and makes some tough decisions that China does not agree with. …show more content…
He is taken away from his family at a young age which in turn drives him to work harder. Li is very caring and helpful which makes him likeable to the audience. Ben Stevenson, played by Bruce Greenwood, is an upper-class character. Ben is very expressive in what he wears and how he acts. Throughout the film, Ben helps Li to become a known star.
Throughout the film the viewer sees the characters wearing a Chairman Mao badge; this shows that Chairman Mao is a very symbolic code in the film and that the Chinese people worship him. Images of Chairman Mao are seen throughout the film hanging in many homes and businesses. The Chinese ballet company where Mao danced were not permitted to dance the traditional style of ballet, always having to be revolutionary in style. Other symbolic codes throughout the film include the use of Cherry Blossom trees, Chinese style clothing and traditional language spoken in
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