The Goddess | Rotten Tomatoes (2025)

100% Tomatometer 5 Reviews 88% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings

In Shanghai, a young woman (Lingyu Ruan) can support her baby boy only by turning to prostitution. In avoiding the police, the young woman comes under the inadvertent protection of a criminal boss who assaults her, then coerces her to work for him. Brutally forced to continue street walking, the woman nevertheless begins saving money secretly in order to send her son to a good school. When the boy is of age, his mother realizes her dream, until a teacher begins an investigation into her past.

Critics Reviews

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The Goddess | Rotten Tomatoes (1) Scott MacDonald Sight & Sound One of the most powerful silent films of all time. Jan 29, 2014 Full Review The Goddess | Rotten Tomatoes (2) Time Out Free of moralism and melodrama, expressively composed and lit and very naturalistically acted, this is a film of startling modernity. Jan 29, 2014 Full Review The Goddess | Rotten Tomatoes (3) Bob Graham San Francisco Chronicle This exercise in social realism can be slow and requires concentration, but The Goddess provides a first- hand look at a remarkable performance by Ruan. Jan 29, 2014 Full Review The Goddess | Rotten Tomatoes (4) Jeffrey M. Anderson Combustible Celluloid Ruan's performance is so heartrendingly pure that the film is almost unbearable to watch. Rated: 3.5/4 Jan 29, 2014 Full Review The Goddess | Rotten Tomatoes (5) Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Tragic tale of shame and sacrifice. Rated: B+ Sep 30, 2013 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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S R 1001 movies to see before you die (later list). An impressive Chinese movie showing the struggles of a prostitute trying to make life better for her child. Despite its simplicity, it was well made and effective. It was also fascinating to see pre communist Chinese 20th century culture. Saw on YouTube. Rated 3/5 Stars • Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/11/24 Full Review Yellowfur D During the Republic of China, before feminism became popular, films were shot from a female perspective. There is no sound and the picture quality is not good, but you can still see some details of Ruan Lingyu's acting, such as touching the child's shoulder when talking to the principal. Rated 4.5/5 Stars • Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 09/12/23 Full Review william d Frankly, the acting isn't very good, but I couldn't help but be taken in by this sentimental and tragic tale of a mother struggling to support and educate her son. Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review William L This woman ends up with an abusive thief who constantly steals from her, and then goes and hides her life savings in the most obvious place imaginable in her apartment. A conversation on humanity and compassion in a morally conservative society, The Goddess may be thematically simple, but still has a message to tell. Ruan Lingyu is very capable in her leading performance as a single mother who resorts to prostitution to support herself and her son, who is subsequently ostracized by both the people and society for the sin of his mother's supposed indecency. Though rather late for a silent film that was not explicitly attempting to avoid sound (it seems to have remained the standard in Chinese film production for several years beyond major centers of film production) and slightly suffering as a result, The Goddess remains a well-shot, distinctive work of social criticism that calls into question the role of explicit, letter-of-the-law morality when a valid rationalization can be found, particularly in the context of Confucian values. (3.5/5) Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/22/21 Full Review Audience Member é?®ç?²ç??ç??女ç¥?ã?? Rated 4/5 Stars • Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Audience Member One of the greatest acting performances of the silent age. Rated 4/5 Stars • Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Read all reviews

The Goddess

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Cast & Crew

Yonggang Wu Director Lingyu Ruan The Goddess Tian Jian Actor Zhizhi Zhang The Boss Keng Li Actor Yonggang Wu Screenwriter
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The Goddess

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Synopsis In Shanghai, a young woman (Lingyu Ruan) can support her baby boy only by turning to prostitution. In avoiding the police, the young woman comes under the inadvertent protection of a criminal boss who assaults her, then coerces her to work for him. Brutally forced to continue street walking, the woman nevertheless begins saving money secretly in order to send her son to a good school. When the boy is of age, his mother realizes her dream, until a teacher begins an investigation into her past.

Director
Yonggang Wu

Producer
Minwei Tian

Screenwriter
Yonggang Wu

Genre
Drama

Runtime
1h 7m
The Goddess | Rotten Tomatoes (2025)
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