The Blue Kite

THE BLUE KITE, the eighth feature directed by acclaimed "Fifth Generation" filmmaker Tian Zhuangzhuang, is a worm's-eye-view of political events in Beijing in the 1950s and 60s. Banned in China due to its relative historical frankness, the film is an ambitious, complex portrayal of the effects of the Cultural Revolution and subsequent upheavals on some of the country's more modest citizens.

Most of the action is viewed through the eyes of a young boy, Tietou (played by Yi Tian, Zhang Wenyao, and Chen Xiaoman, reflecting ages from infancy through adolescence), whose life, as he notes in a voice-over, was influenced by world events even before his birth: his pare...