Red Corner
Red Corner
R | 30 October 1997 (USA)
Red Corner Trailers

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.

Reviews
Stoutor It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.
Rio Hayward All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.
Beulah Bram A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.
Patrick Bateman I came across this movie on Hulu last night by accident, after failing to stream two other movies, and am overall glad I decided to "settle" for it. It definitely could have been better in several ways, but the historical/legal aspect of it, set in transitional 90's Communist China is actually pretty outstanding and memorable. As one other user commented, the Chinese acting is perfectly convincing and even frightening in how realistic it is, but unfortunately Richard Gere's character is a little too...I don't know, idiotic? for my liking. Still, I wouldn't say he single-handedly ruined the movie.Reading the production notes and trivia on here is interesting to me because it shows how the producers really did capture the reality of what goes on in Red China. I visited all over China and Lhasa, Tibet, right after the olympics and can vouch that the same legal situation still exists there today. In Beijing, we drove by a large, concrete and windowless court-building with the CCP emblem (seen many times in the film, and omnipresent in China in general) and when asked what the building was, my tour guide just responded plainly, "That's where you go to die." For a foreigner, yeah, it might take a murder or espionage charge to keep you imprisoned indefinitely over there, but for Chinese citizens, many crimes are still punishable by execution without a fair trial, just as the film accurately portrays.So, if you're into Chinese history or culture, then this is definitely worth watching, even more than once. If not, then don't watch it.
Jack Chan This film revealed the Chinese justice system accurately. I am from China. I have experienced the Chinese justice, it favors the rich and man with connections with the officials, they can forge evidence to frame you, and you can do nothing about it disregard your strong evidence indicate otherwise. People here are nothing but slaves to the powerful red machine. Those corrupt officials always get away with it. Maybe that is why the Hong Kong counterparts want universal suffrage to guarantee their rights not being violated. This film tells the accurate story of how the Chinese Justice System works. The party officials control the lawyers and judges from behind and decide the outcome of the lawsuits.
thinker1691 This is one of those average films one does not expect to have much substance. Unexpectedly though, director Jon Avnet and a script by Robert King provide the basis for a surprising hit. The essence of this film is called " Red Corner " and tells the story of an American businessman and attorney Jack Moore (Richard Gere) who visits China to broker a satellite communication's deal with up and coming Chinese businessmen. However, Mr. Moore has the unfortunate luck to make enemies out of unscrupulous executives.They set him up with a sexy Chinese girl who returns to his hotel room, where both strip, make love, get drunk and pass out. The following morning, Jack is accosted, arrested and imprisoned for the brutal murder of the girl. Unaware of Chinese criminal procedures, the accused has little to expect, except that execution is swift if he confesses. Pleading Not Guilty is not an option and is fully explained by his court appointed attorney Shen Yuelin (Ling Bai). Together they face an up hill battle to prevent his execution and prove his innocence. Versitle actor (West Wing) Bradley Whitford) plays a U.S. consulate friend. The movie itself is filled with dark drama, exciting realism, scary prison scenes and brutality. Gere is incredible as he portrays a man on the brink of death trying to exonerate himself from a twisted government where friend and foe alike wear the same color hat. Terrific movie. ****
math_grenades Don't let the one star ratings that other people have given Red Corner fool you - Manos: The Hands of Fate this is not. Nonetheless, it's a very dull film, with pedestrian direction and pretty unconvincing acting. Richard Gere and Bai Ling have zero chemistry together, and having to watch Bai Ling try to emote is a bit painful. Gere is just his usually smug self, woefully out of place for the substance (what little there is) of a film like this. The plot is shallow and hackneyed as well. The prime fault of this film, though, is just how overwhelmingly devoid of any aesthetic or artistic sensibility it actually is; it's like a movie of the week, from the melodramatic music to the cardboard characters. Chinese communism is a ripe target for thought-provoking films but this one totally misses the mark. Only the dullest among us would find this tripe 'under-rated' as one IMDb commenter put it. No accounting for taste, I suppose.