You gu lian ge

This movie made in the very early era of the Chinese reform is a pioneer of social satire and introspection on the Cultural Revolution that had just ended half a decade ago.

This suspicion among the villagers would definitely remind people of what had happened not long ago in China during the Cultural Revolution, anyone with relatives or friends oversea would be suspected as a spy. The controversy caused by the stranger dating the village chief's daughter also mirrors the fact that during the Cultural Revolution (and also before the Cultural Revolution), finding a spouse needs the party approval. You have to live through that mad era in order to make the connection.