In the Heat of the Sun is a 1994 Chinese film directed and written by Jiang Wen. The film is based loosely on author Wang Shuo's novel Wild Beast. Jiang Wen, known as one of China’s best actors and seen in numerous films such as Red Sorghum (1988), Hibiscus Town (1987), The Imperial Eunuch (1991), and Letter from An Unknown Woman (2004), is also a very successful filmmaker and director.In the Heat of the Sun was Jiang Wen's first foray into directing after years as a leading actor. In the film, Jiang Wen utilized eroticism to restructure the discourse of Maoist China. The romantic and nostalgic representation of history is evident through the sensual narrative as well as the sexual experience of the film’s characters at the height of the Cultural Revolution.