PBS - China: A Century of Revolution (1997)

Chronicling China's tumultuous 20th century through rare archival footage and eyewitness accounts. Covers civil war between Mao and Chiang, Mao's attempts to forge a new China, Deng's market reforms after Mao's death.

Part 1: China in Revolution (1911-1949)
China In Revolution begins in 1911 with the fall of the last emperor and continues through 1949, highlighting four decades of civil war, foreign invasion and the ascension of rival leaders Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai-shek. Rarely seen photos and film footage - among the earliest ever recorded in China - reveal fascinating details of a long-censored history. Hear the facts and meet the people who experienced modern China's most violent era.

Part 2: The Mao Years (1949-1976)
From the beginning of his rule in 1949 to his death in 1976, Moa Zedong and his colleagues attempted to forge a "new China" from a country mired in poverty and devastated by decades of war. Yet the Mao years would bring the new People's Republic of China little stability. Rare interviews with Communist Party members and ordinary citizens involved with history's largest political experiment, reveal the turbulence, famine, violent campaigns and purges which destroyed the lives of more than one million people.

Part 3: Born under the Red Flag (1976-1997)
Born Under the Red Flag begins with Mao's death in 1976, continues with the new leadership of Deng Xiaoping, and concludes with the struggle of China's paradoxical goals of economic prosperity and absolute Communist Party control. In the short span of 15 years, China transformed itself into a never-before-seen hybrid of communism and capitalism. And although it has become the third largest economy in the world, the price has been high. Rare interviews and film footage highlight the Democracy Wall Movement, the establishment of Special Economic Zones and the dramatic student protests in Tiananmen Square.