高剔红（陆小芬 饰）十二岁便失去了父母，十六岁弟弟亦死于意外，悲惨的童年经历让高剔红早早就看透了世间的人情冷暖世态炎凉，她明白，在这个世界上，她能够依靠的，只有自己。
离开了深爱的渔夫秦江海（任达华 饰），高剔红卯足了劲，想方设法终于嫁入豪门，然而，厄运紧跟其后，几年之后，高剔红带着年仅五岁的儿子成为了寡妇。然而，命运并没有将高剔红打垮，她和天斗和地斗和人斗，终于成为了一家之主，可是，手中所掌握的金钱和权利无法填满她空虚的心灵，就在此时，家中一位长工的出现吸引了她的注意，因为这位长工有着和秦江海极为相似的容貌，令高剔红情不自禁。

Hong Kong student Ben Lee becomes friends with his mainland Chinese classmate Chang Chih while studying abroad in Japan. Ben is unmotivated to study and only cares about money and on the other hand, whenever Chih encounters a Chinese person, he would ask whereabouts of his childhood sweetheart. Ming is also from Hong Kong and in order to elevate his social status, he becomes involved with a bar hostess and owner Yuriko, hoping to become Yakuza leader Yamada Ishikawa's brother in-law.

村里由于稻米产量过剩而导致滞销，引发了农民强烈不满。农会藉此机会提倡精致农业，稻田转作是一个有利的方向，经过初步调查实验，村里的气候和土质非常适合花卉栽培，但村民极力反对和排斥。
一位年轻美丽的女性农业专家凌云峰（王祖贤 饰），特别下乡来辅导转作，劝导村民少种稻米改种花卉，最后选定阿满姨的土地试种。种植的菊花经过细心的照顾长势良好，可采收时偏逢台风来临，大家只好在风雨中拼命抢收菊花。由于产地的花卉都被风雨打坏，所以价钱大大提高，利润相对提高，于是村民都开始转作花卉，也和云峰建立了良好的互动关系和感情。但农民周添旺却不愿接受，而且声言抵制，周家次子永健（齐秦 饰）是农村新一代年轻人，有新头脑，愿意接受新技术，因此成了女专家的助手，两人互生爱意。村长之女林千慧与永健青梅竹马，对永健情有独钟，见永健与女专家形影不离，不禁黯然神伤。凌云峰知悉后，决定成全二人，当农民终于能接受新观念之后，云峰也功成身退而去。当她准备离开，全村的人都来车站送行，这让云峰感动不已……

1982 film by King Hu

1983 film

1983 film directed by Edward Yang

1983 film by Hou Hsiao-Hsien

1995 film by Wan Jen

1994 film by Wu Nien-jen

Master puppeteer Li Tien-lu recalls his life in Japanese-occupied Taiwan during the first half of the 20th century.

In 1920s Taiwan, Jou, a controversial woman with a tragic past, seeks to change her life after falling for a man named Che. Meanwhile, a man named Wei seeks to buy the freedom of Fumiko, a dying young woman.

1986 film by Hou Hsiao-Hsien

1989 film by Hou Hsiao-Hsien