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The Nine-Colored Deer

Name: The Nine-Colored Deer
Director: Qian Jiajun, Dai Tielang
Released: 1981
Duration: 25 min

Representation Score

3.5/10

Limited

1981

Director

Qian Jiajun, Dai Tielang

Runtime

25 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

The Nine-Colored Deer is a foundational piece of Chinese animation that uses folklore to challenge traditional power structures. It introduces a Persian merchant to provide a cross-cultural perspective, adding depth to the ancient setting. However, the film lacks contemporary identity-based representation, focusing instead on moral and systemic critiques. The film's strength lies in its critique of imperial corruption and the positioning of a spiritual entity as the ultimate judge of justice.

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Category Breakdown

Does The Nine-Colored Deer have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film focuses on traditional protagonists without depicting any LGBTQ+ relationships or identities.

How does The Nine-Colored Deer portray gender?

Fair

The story centers around male characters and lacks strong female roles or ability to act.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The Nine-Colored Deer?

Good

The inclusion of a Persian merchant introduces a multicultural element to the ancient setting.

How does The Nine-Colored Deer represent religion and culture?

Good

The film critiques imperial greed and absolute monarchy through a spiritual lens, challenging the dominance of state authority.

Does The Nine-Colored Deer include disability representation?

Minimal

The film does not depict any characters with disabilities or conditions.

Present on Screen

The inclusion of a Persian merchant adds cross-cultural depth.
The film effectively critiques imperial corruption and absolute monarchy.
The spiritual protagonist challenges the established social hierarchy.

Limited or Absent

The film lacks strong female roles or ability to act.
There is no representation of LGBTQ+ identities or non-assuming gender matches what was assigned at birth characters.
The story does not include characters with disabilities.

Official Synopsis

In ancient times, a Persian merchant gets lost in a windstorm. Suddenly a spiritual deer of nine colors appears to guide the man. Later on, the deer rescues a man drowning in a river. In exchange, the man promises not to reveal the deer's whereabouts. The man reaches an imperial palace. The king insists on hunting down the spiritual deer down to make clothes out of the deer skin. The man gives in to his greed and leads an army of warriors to the spot. He falls into the river again, hoping the deer will show up to rescue him. This time, all the warriors' arrows turn into dust and the man is drowned

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