Under the Hawthorn Tree

Under the Hawthorn Tree is set in China during the Cultural Revolution, when high-school student Jing is sent from the city to a mountain village for reeducation and put to work helping prepare a textbook. There she meets Sun, a young geology student whose military family stands far above her own in political standing. Jing's father is a political prisoner, and her mother, who works as a teacher, has struggled to hold the family together and fears any misstep that could wreck their position. The two young people fall in love anyway, and the relationship puts Jing's future and her family's safety under strain.

Zhang Yimou directed the film, his fourteenth in chronological order, following To Each His Own Cinema and preceding The Flowers of War. The screenplay was written by Yin Lichuan, Gu Xiaobai and A Mei and adapted from Ai Mi's novel. It runs 113 minutes and was produced by Beijing New Picture Film Co. Ltd., with Bian Tiejun as producer. Zhou Dongyu plays Jing and Shawn Dou plays Sun, and the credited cast of 29 includes Xi Meijuan as Jing's mother, Li Xuejian, Cheng Taishen and Sa Rina.

Released on 16 September 2010, the film holds a rating of 7.8 out of 10 on TMDB from 163 votes.