Wuxia Film: A Qualitative Perspective of Chinese Legal Consciousness

Abstract

I conduct a close reading of wuxia film, a source neglected in discussions about legal consciousness despite expressing implicit commentary on the issue, by analyzing shifts between the 1980/1990s and post-2001 in the characterization of the protagonist and the visual composition of the films. I argue that changes in the contemporary films suggest Chinese skepticism of the transformative power of current legal reforms that is deeply rooted in the country’s historical experience of being objectified by the West.