Cultural Allegories of the Post-Revolutionary Era—

Reflections on Reading Liu Jiming's Reviews of Let the Bullets Fly and Hidden Man

Zuo Ping， December 15, 2025

Written by Wutong Yu

In his Random Thoughts, Liu Jiming regards Let the Bullets Fly and Hidden Man [Note: English title for 《邪不压正》] as "cultural allegories of the post-revolutionary era." The core lies in how Jiang Wen, through these two films, uses highly metaphorical narratives to deconstruct the post-revolutionary predicament where revolutionary ideals have been alienated and historical truth has been tampered with, attempting to awaken reflection on the essence of revolution.

I. Historical Rewriting and the Allegory of Revolutionary Betrayal

Hidden Man: The "Heart-Killing" Operation of Inverting History

After Zhu Qianlong murders his master, he shapes himself into a hero "inheriting the orthodox tradition" through means such as erecting statues of his master and presiding over memorial ceremonies, while conversely slandering the true avenger Li Tianran as a traitor. This plot maps onto the post-revolutionary era power group's betrayal of revolutionary founders: through usurping the right to interpret history, they instrumentalize revolutionary symbols to conceal their own deviation from revolutionary original intentions. Lenin's discussion about "rendering revolutionary leaders harmless and turning them into idols" receives visual presentation here—Zhu Qianlong's behavior is essentially "killing the heart," completely erasing the original meaning of revolutionary spirit.

Let the Bullets Fly: The Cycle of Revolutionary Fruits Being Stolen

Zhang Mazi overthrows Huang Silang, but the fruits of victory are ultimately stolen by the opportunist "Lao San" [Third Brother] group. At the film's end, Lao San leaves on a train symbolizing the privileged elite, while the true revolutionary Zhang Mazi follows alone on horseback, metaphorizing how idealists are marginalized after revolutionary success, and new elites practice oppression in revolution's name. Ma Shitu's [Note: author of the original novel Robbers and Brigands] deathbed words, "It hasn't ended, a new struggle has begun," suggest revolution's unfinished nature and recurrence.

II. The Post-Revolutionary Era Predicament: Withering Ideals and Memory Fracture

The Mechanism of Revolutionary Ideals' Demise

In Gone with the Bullets [Note:  middle film of Jiang Wen's trilogy], Wanyan Ying, who symbolizes revolutionary ideals, dies through the compromise and betrayal of the revolutionary youth Ma Zoudi, suggesting the new generation's abandonment of revolutionary spirit in the post-revolutionary era. In Hidden Man, the remaining revolutionary memory is guarded only by an elder (shouting "You must come back"), highlighting the rupture of revolutionary history among younger groups.

Violence's Alienation and Revenge's Powerlessness

Though Li Tianran's revenge succeeds, it remains only at the individual level, unable to change systematic oppression (such as class exploitation and bureaucratic corruption). This metaphorizes individual resistance's limitations in the post-revolutionary era: when revolution is downgraded to personal vendetta, its power to transform society has already dissolved.

III. The Critical Nature of Allegorical Form: The Intertextuality of Absurdity and Reality

Jiang Wen adopts highly stylized absurdist narrative (such as the rooftop kingdom of Beiping, bullet time), not to escape reality, but to tear open historical truth through surrealist techniques:

Let the Bullets Fly's "bandits fighting tyrants" is actually a metaphor for class struggle. The Goose City people's cycle—from "kneeling to earn money" to "standing up to rebel" to "kneeling again"—reveals revolutionary participants' blind obedience and revolutionary achievements' fragility.

Hidden Man's "statue in the poppy field" uses visual irony to expose power's hypocrisy: a statue of a master who opposed opium stands in an opium field, yet the watching crowd is completely oblivious. This absurdist sense directly points to the disconnect between ideological propaganda and reality in post-revolutionary society.

IV. Allegory as Hope: The Possibility of Reconstructing Historical Agency

Both films conclude with "unfinished revolution":

Li Tianran's Growth is interpreted as "Young China's" awakening. His dual physical and spiritual trauma (opium needles, psychological fear) symbolizes the nation's modern historical suffering, while his ultimate successful revenge suggests the younger generation has potential to "right the inverted history."

Zhang Mazi's Question "Lao San, did you really win?" and the shot at the end of Hidden Man where Li Tianran gazes out over Beiping City both point toward an open ending—revolution hasn't ended but is awaiting new historical agents.

Conclusion: The Contemporaneity of Cultural Allegory

Liu Jiming's interpretation resonates because Jiang Wen uses cinematic language to capture core contradictions in China's post-revolutionary society: power's appropriation of revolutionary history, the masses' aphasia regarding revolutionary memory, and individuals' struggle within grand narratives. These allegories are not only historical reflections but become mirrors for contemporary audiences to understand current predicaments—when "revolution" degenerates into a deconstructed symbol, how to rebuild authentic historical agency on its ruins becomes the ultimate question these two films leave behind.