Crosscurrent will have its digital premiere on Mubi on April 3rd. The visually stunning fantasy film about a poet’s trip on China’s longest river shot by Mark Lee Ping-Bing (In the Mood for Love) in 35 mm won the master cinematographer a Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution at Berlinale. The deal was negotiated by Mubi’s Vice President of Content Daniel Kasman and Cheng Cheng’s Distribution Creative Director Yalin Chi.
“It is a great honor to be able to give the online premiere to Chao Yang’s magnificent film. It is a rare feature film whose grand ambitions result in cinematic poetry,” said Daniel Kasman, Vice President of Content at Mubi. “Master cinematographer Mark Lee Ping-bing deserved to win the Silver Bear at the Berlinale for his work, and we’re thrilled to offer this prize-winning Chinese film to our audience.”
“Cheng Cheng has always appreciated how...
“It is a great honor to be able to give the online premiere to Chao Yang’s magnificent film. It is a rare feature film whose grand ambitions result in cinematic poetry,” said Daniel Kasman, Vice President of Content at Mubi. “Master cinematographer Mark Lee Ping-bing deserved to win the Silver Bear at the Berlinale for his work, and we’re thrilled to offer this prize-winning Chinese film to our audience.”
“Cheng Cheng has always appreciated how...
- 2/23/2020
- by Don Anelli
- AsianMoviePulse
Three years after “Fantasia”, the winner of the Prix un certain regard at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival for “Luxury Car” returns with a heartbreaking, kind of surrealistic drama, that follows in similar visual footsteps as Yang Chao’s “Crosscurrent”.
“River’s Edge” screened at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian cinema, running from January 30 to February 6
Lao Yu, a rich entrepreneur from Beijing arrives at the rural village his estranged son used to teach, after he is informed that he drowned in the river. While the searches for Lao Yu Junior’s body continue, the father settles in the village, and spends much time with the school’s head teacher, and learns about Xiaofen, the young girl his son had taken under his protection and the one who saved before dying. As he spends time in the village, he starts to learn about the unknown man his son has become,...
“River’s Edge” screened at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian cinema, running from January 30 to February 6
Lao Yu, a rich entrepreneur from Beijing arrives at the rural village his estranged son used to teach, after he is informed that he drowned in the river. While the searches for Lao Yu Junior’s body continue, the father settles in the village, and spends much time with the school’s head teacher, and learns about Xiaofen, the young girl his son had taken under his protection and the one who saved before dying. As he spends time in the village, he starts to learn about the unknown man his son has become,...
- 2/3/2019
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Yang Mingming was born in Beijing in 1987, and is a graduate of the National Academy of Chinese Theater Arts. Her debut, a short film “Female Directors,” was deemed one of the most interesting independent Chinese films of 2012 and went to be screened at numerous festivals. She worked with Yang Chao as the editor of his “Crosscurrent.””Girls Always Happy” is her first feature film.
On the occasion of the screening of Girls Always Happy at Five Flavours Festival, where the film earned a special mention from the jury, we speak with her and Li Yuan, one of the actresses of the movie, about “Crosscurrent”, mothers and daughters, the shooting of the film, hutong, the situation in Chinese cinema, and other topics.
You have worked in Yang Chao’s “Crosscurrent” as an editor. How was the experience of working in the film and what about working with Mark Lee?
Yang Mingming:...
On the occasion of the screening of Girls Always Happy at Five Flavours Festival, where the film earned a special mention from the jury, we speak with her and Li Yuan, one of the actresses of the movie, about “Crosscurrent”, mothers and daughters, the shooting of the film, hutong, the situation in Chinese cinema, and other topics.
You have worked in Yang Chao’s “Crosscurrent” as an editor. How was the experience of working in the film and what about working with Mark Lee?
Yang Mingming:...
- 11/28/2018
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Where realism and wild imagination meet in contemporary Chinese cinema.
Unexpected Journeys is a film programme introducing and celebrating Magical Realism in Chinese cinema and curated by Giada Liu from the National Film and Television School.
The films selected explore and challenge the limits of realistic storytelling, either aesthetically or narratively. They combine realism with imagination, absurdity and fantasy, creating a ‘new vision’ of reality that highlights Chinese filmmakers’ self-reflection in a drastically changing society.
Unexpected Journeys is composed by four films from Mainland China that created their own version of Magical Realism.
On September 27th at Curzon Goldsmiths in London, there will be the screening of the visually spectacular and dreamlike second feature “Crosscurrent” (2016) by Yang Chao and one of Jiang Wen’s witty and nostalgic creations “The Sun Also Rises” (2007).
On September 30th at Rio Cinema in London, we are showing the poetic journey in time “Kaili Blues...
Unexpected Journeys is a film programme introducing and celebrating Magical Realism in Chinese cinema and curated by Giada Liu from the National Film and Television School.
The films selected explore and challenge the limits of realistic storytelling, either aesthetically or narratively. They combine realism with imagination, absurdity and fantasy, creating a ‘new vision’ of reality that highlights Chinese filmmakers’ self-reflection in a drastically changing society.
Unexpected Journeys is composed by four films from Mainland China that created their own version of Magical Realism.
On September 27th at Curzon Goldsmiths in London, there will be the screening of the visually spectacular and dreamlike second feature “Crosscurrent” (2016) by Yang Chao and one of Jiang Wen’s witty and nostalgic creations “The Sun Also Rises” (2007).
On September 30th at Rio Cinema in London, we are showing the poetic journey in time “Kaili Blues...
- 9/18/2018
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
The old ship drifts along the Yangtze as poetry drifts through the air. From Shanghai to the Three Gorges Dam it goes, the surrounding world shrouded in cold blue mist and open sky. This is Yang Chao’s “Crosscurrent” —it’s beautiful; it’s breathtaking; it’s oh-so-dull.
Read More: The 50 Best Foreign Language Movies Of The 21st Century So Far
“Crosscurrent” took ten years to complete, and is no doubt a passion project for the filmmaker.
Continue reading Yang Chao’s ‘Crosscurrent’ Is Beautiful, Breathtaking And Dull [AFI Fest Review] at The Playlist.
Read More: The 50 Best Foreign Language Movies Of The 21st Century So Far
“Crosscurrent” took ten years to complete, and is no doubt a passion project for the filmmaker.
Continue reading Yang Chao’s ‘Crosscurrent’ Is Beautiful, Breathtaking And Dull [AFI Fest Review] at The Playlist.
- 11/15/2016
- by Chris Evangelista
- The Playlist
Exclusive: Chinese distributor also has animation Lighting Dindin.
Chinese distributor Lemon Tree Media has moved into international sales with a slate headed by animated feature Lighting Dindin and Berlin prize winner Crosscurrent [pictured].
Produced by China’s Its Cartoon Production, Lighting Dindin tells the story of a luminous bug and a tiny alien. Directed by Deng Weifeng and co-produced by China’s Cheerland and Ht Media, the film is being lined up for release in Feburary 2017.
Its Cartoon Production previously produced hit animation franchises Kwai Boo and Yugo & Lala.
Yang Chao’s Crosscurent, which won a Silver Bear for cinematography at this year’s Berlin, tells the story of a boat captain on the Yangtze River tracing the life story of a mysterious woman backwards over a 20-year time span.
“Our aim is to acquire animation, which sells globally, and horror films, which are popular in Asia, as well as occasional award-winning and prestige Chinese films,” said Lemon Tree...
Chinese distributor Lemon Tree Media has moved into international sales with a slate headed by animated feature Lighting Dindin and Berlin prize winner Crosscurrent [pictured].
Produced by China’s Its Cartoon Production, Lighting Dindin tells the story of a luminous bug and a tiny alien. Directed by Deng Weifeng and co-produced by China’s Cheerland and Ht Media, the film is being lined up for release in Feburary 2017.
Its Cartoon Production previously produced hit animation franchises Kwai Boo and Yugo & Lala.
Yang Chao’s Crosscurent, which won a Silver Bear for cinematography at this year’s Berlin, tells the story of a boat captain on the Yangtze River tracing the life story of a mysterious woman backwards over a 20-year time span.
“Our aim is to acquire animation, which sells globally, and horror films, which are popular in Asia, as well as occasional award-winning and prestige Chinese films,” said Lemon Tree...
- 11/4/2016
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
In the early minutes of Chinese director Yang Chao’s sophomore feature, a fish is thrown into a bowl of water somewhere along an anonymous riverbank, darkened with bluish hues, lit only by the gleam of fire. It’s a mightily fine shot that probably would have made a bigger impact if some recent déjà vu courtesy of The Revenant hadn’t kicked in. That said, its serene beauty and intrinsically fabulous quality set quite the visual/metaphorical stage for a surrealist exploration of nature and men. Moreover, the thought of what legendary cinematographer Mark Lee Ping-Bin – Taiwan’s answer to Lubezki, who’s lensed almost the entire filmography of Hou Hsiao-Hsien – can do with this is nothing short of mouth-watering.
Unfortunately, things kind of go downhill from there.
It’s a thankless job to synopsize what happens in Crosscurrent because happen is a strong word for something with...
Unfortunately, things kind of go downhill from there.
It’s a thankless job to synopsize what happens in Crosscurrent because happen is a strong word for something with...
- 10/31/2016
- by Zhuo-Ning Su
- The Film Stage
Mark Lee Ping-Bing, long-time Hou Hsiao-hsien collaborator (including his most recent film, the stunning The Assassin) and cinematographer of the luminous In the Mood For Love (alongside Christopher Doyle and Pung-Leung Kwan), is back with a new feature this year. Crosscurrent, directed by Yang Chao, picked up the Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Achievement at the Berlin International Film Festival, and it’ll get a U.S. release starting this week.
“The core of the film is surreal, almost supernatural—a man and a woman from a different time and space travel against each other, progressively and retrogressively at the same,” says Yang Chao. The U.S. trailer has now arrived, which shows off the ravishing imagery as we journey up the Yangtze. Check it out below, along with the poster.
Mysterious, sublime and elegiac, director Yang Chao’s odyssey blends breathtaking images with fantasy, poetry and history to create a complex magical universe.
“The core of the film is surreal, almost supernatural—a man and a woman from a different time and space travel against each other, progressively and retrogressively at the same,” says Yang Chao. The U.S. trailer has now arrived, which shows off the ravishing imagery as we journey up the Yangtze. Check it out below, along with the poster.
Mysterious, sublime and elegiac, director Yang Chao’s odyssey blends breathtaking images with fantasy, poetry and history to create a complex magical universe.
- 10/25/2016
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
"This river is mine." Cheng Cheng Films has debuted the trailer for a Chinese drama titled Crosscurrent, which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year. The poetic film is a fantasy romance set on the Yangtze River, and was actually filmed on the river itself. They wanted to "capture the traditional ink-brush painting look of the Yangtze". As artistic as it looks, there's also a greyness they've captured of the modern world. The stunning cinematography won a Silver Bear award in Berlin for cinematographer Ping Bin Lee's "outstanding artistic contribution". Crosscurrent stars Hao Qin, Zhilei Xin, and Kai Tan. Watch below. Here's the first official trailer (+ two posters) for Yang Chao's Crosscurrent, direct from YouTube: A voyage in between a woman who tries to searching for the meaning of life and a man holding a book of poems on the longest river of Mainland China. Crosscurrent...
- 10/24/2016
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
At this year’s Berlin Film Festival, Mark Lee Ping-Bing’s photography in Yang Chao’s “Crosscurrent” won the Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution for Cinematography. The film follows Gao Chun (Qin Hao), who takes over his family’s courier ship and travels up the Yangtze River to deliver some cargo. At different ports, he comes across the beautiful prostitute An Lu (Xin Zhilei) in various identities and ages, and begins to wonder if she’s part of the supernatural or if he’s traveling through time. Watch a trailer for the film below.
Read More: Mark Lee Ping-Bing’s Layered and Luminous Cinematography Shows the Power Of Minimalism
Lee is best known for working with such acclaimed directors like Wong Kar-Wai and Hou Hsiao-Hsien. He received the Grand Technical Prize at the Cannes Film Festival for his photography in “In the Mood for Love.” His most recent...
Read More: Mark Lee Ping-Bing’s Layered and Luminous Cinematography Shows the Power Of Minimalism
Lee is best known for working with such acclaimed directors like Wong Kar-Wai and Hou Hsiao-Hsien. He received the Grand Technical Prize at the Cannes Film Festival for his photography in “In the Mood for Love.” His most recent...
- 10/24/2016
- by Vikram Murthi
- Indiewire
Following yesterday’s announcement of more than 60 new titles, AFI Fest has named the 30-plus films in its World Cinema section. Cristian Mungiu’s “Graduation,” Betrand Bonello’s “Nocturama” and Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or–winning “I, Daniel Blake” are among the more notable selections, most of them culled from Cannes, Venice and other festivals.
The weeklong event, which begins in Hollywood with the world premiere of Warren Beatty’s “Rules Don’t Apply” on November 10, also announced that Raoul Peck and Lav Diaz will present their films “I Am Not Your Negro” and “The Woman Who Left,” respectively, as part of the Masters in Conversation program.
Read More: AFI Fest Announces New Auteurs, American Independents, Midnight and Shorts Sections
“After Love” (dir. Joachim Lafosse)
“Albüm” (dir. Mehmet Can Mertoğlu)
“Boris Without Beatrice” (dir. Denis Côté)
“The Commune” (dir. Thomas Vinterberg)
“Crosscurrent” (dir. Yang Chao)
“Death in Sarajevo” (dir.
The weeklong event, which begins in Hollywood with the world premiere of Warren Beatty’s “Rules Don’t Apply” on November 10, also announced that Raoul Peck and Lav Diaz will present their films “I Am Not Your Negro” and “The Woman Who Left,” respectively, as part of the Masters in Conversation program.
Read More: AFI Fest Announces New Auteurs, American Independents, Midnight and Shorts Sections
“After Love” (dir. Joachim Lafosse)
“Albüm” (dir. Mehmet Can Mertoğlu)
“Boris Without Beatrice” (dir. Denis Côté)
“The Commune” (dir. Thomas Vinterberg)
“Crosscurrent” (dir. Yang Chao)
“Death in Sarajevo” (dir.
- 10/19/2016
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
Pablo Larrain’s Chilean foreign language Oscar contender and Amat Escalante’s latest film will feature among the festival’s World Cinema selection.
Joining Neruda (pictured) and The Untamed on AFI Fest’s 33-strong programme are Bertrand Bonello’s Nocturama selection, Denis Côté’s Boris Without Beatrice, Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, Thomas Vinterberg’s The Commune, Yang Chao’s Crosscurrent, Death In Sarajevo from Danis Tanović, and Juho Kuosmanen’s The Happiest Day In The Life Of Olli Mäki.
Cinema’s Legacy highlights include Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane (1941), Ida Lupino’s The Hitch-Hiker (1953), Carmen Jones (1954) starring Dorothy Dandridge, and Julie Dash’s Daughters Of The Dust.
The inaugural Masters In Conversation series features screenings followed by on-stage talks for Raoul Peck’s I Am Not Your Negro, Lav Diaz’s The Woman Who Left, and Gianfranco Rosi’s Berlinale Golden Bear winner Fire At Sea.
AFI Fest runs from November 10-17. Click here for the full line-ups...
Joining Neruda (pictured) and The Untamed on AFI Fest’s 33-strong programme are Bertrand Bonello’s Nocturama selection, Denis Côté’s Boris Without Beatrice, Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, Thomas Vinterberg’s The Commune, Yang Chao’s Crosscurrent, Death In Sarajevo from Danis Tanović, and Juho Kuosmanen’s The Happiest Day In The Life Of Olli Mäki.
Cinema’s Legacy highlights include Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane (1941), Ida Lupino’s The Hitch-Hiker (1953), Carmen Jones (1954) starring Dorothy Dandridge, and Julie Dash’s Daughters Of The Dust.
The inaugural Masters In Conversation series features screenings followed by on-stage talks for Raoul Peck’s I Am Not Your Negro, Lav Diaz’s The Woman Who Left, and Gianfranco Rosi’s Berlinale Golden Bear winner Fire At Sea.
AFI Fest runs from November 10-17. Click here for the full line-ups...
- 10/19/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Zhang Hanyi’s Life After Life won the top prize in the Young Cinema Competition.
Chinese director Zhang Hanyi’s Life After Life won the Firebird Award in the Young Cinema Competition at the 40th Hong Kong International Film Festival (Mar 21 – Apr 4).
Händl Klaus’ Tomcat received the Jury Prize in the same section, which aims to discover and honour budding filmmakers.
In the Documentary Competition, the Firebird Award went to Zhao Liang’s Behemoth while the Jury Prize was awarded to Vitaly Mansky’s Under The Sun.
In the Short Film Competition, Leonor Teles’ Batrachian’s Ballad won the Firebird Award and Pimpaka Towira’s Prelude To The General took the Jury Prize.
Thai filmmaker Towira also won the Fipresci Prize for her feature film The Island Funeral.
The Signis Award, which pays tribute to films with social and humanitarian concerns, was presented to Martin Zandvliet’s Land Of Mine, while [link=nm...
Chinese director Zhang Hanyi’s Life After Life won the Firebird Award in the Young Cinema Competition at the 40th Hong Kong International Film Festival (Mar 21 – Apr 4).
Händl Klaus’ Tomcat received the Jury Prize in the same section, which aims to discover and honour budding filmmakers.
In the Documentary Competition, the Firebird Award went to Zhao Liang’s Behemoth while the Jury Prize was awarded to Vitaly Mansky’s Under The Sun.
In the Short Film Competition, Leonor Teles’ Batrachian’s Ballad won the Firebird Award and Pimpaka Towira’s Prelude To The General took the Jury Prize.
Thai filmmaker Towira also won the Fipresci Prize for her feature film The Island Funeral.
The Signis Award, which pays tribute to films with social and humanitarian concerns, was presented to Martin Zandvliet’s Land Of Mine, while [link=nm...
- 4/4/2016
- ScreenDaily
Below you will find our favorite films of the 66th Berlin International Film Festival, as well as an index of our coverage.Daniel Kasmantop Picksi. From the Notebook Of..., Marble Ass, Tout une nuitII. A Quiet Passion, The Adventure of Denchu-Kozo & Isolation of 1/880000, Creepy, Things to Come, Short StayIII. Hanasareru Gang, Tempestad, Karla, A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery, Le fils de Joseph, Ta'angIV. Between Fences, Fire at Sea, Doomed Love – A Journey through German Genre FilmsCOVERAGEAwardsHail...Cinema?: Hail Caesar! (Joel & Ethan Coen)Two Women in Mexico's Storm: Tempestad (Tatiana Huezo)Why Not Stay in Philly?: Short Stay (Ted Fendt)The Title Says It Best: Creepy (Kiyoshi Kurosawa)Women Poets and Philosophers: A Quiet Passion (Terence Davies), Things to Come (Mia Hansen-Løve)Refugee Cinema: Fire at Sea (Gianfranco Rosi), Ta'ang (Wang Bing), Havarie (Philip Scheffner)Cryptograms: Crosscurrent (Yang Chao), Life After Life (Zhang Hanyi)Lost Souls of the...
- 3/7/2016
- by Notebook
- MUBI
The organizers of the Hong Kong International Film Festival (Hkiff) announced that the winners of the Berlinale 2016 will be present on this years programme.
The programme will include the winners of the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize; “Death in Sarajevo” (Bosnia-Herzegovina) by the Danis Tanovic, the winner of the Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize; “A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery” (Philippines) by Lav Diaz; and winner of the Outstanding Artistic Contribution (Cinematography); “Crosscurrent” (China) by Yang Chao.
The Hkiff will also present the winners of the Teddy Award Best Feature Film; “Tomcat” (Austria) by Handl Klaus. Both winners of the Ecumenical Prize (Forum 2016); “Barakah meets Barakah” (Saudi Arabia) by Mahmoud Sabbagh and “Those Who Jump” (Denmark) by Abou Bakar Sidibé, Estephan Wagner and Mortiz Siebert.
Last but not least the festival will screen the winners of the Golden Bear for Best Short; “Batrachian’s Ballad” (Portugal) by Leonor Teles, and...
The programme will include the winners of the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize; “Death in Sarajevo” (Bosnia-Herzegovina) by the Danis Tanovic, the winner of the Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize; “A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery” (Philippines) by Lav Diaz; and winner of the Outstanding Artistic Contribution (Cinematography); “Crosscurrent” (China) by Yang Chao.
The Hkiff will also present the winners of the Teddy Award Best Feature Film; “Tomcat” (Austria) by Handl Klaus. Both winners of the Ecumenical Prize (Forum 2016); “Barakah meets Barakah” (Saudi Arabia) by Mahmoud Sabbagh and “Those Who Jump” (Denmark) by Abou Bakar Sidibé, Estephan Wagner and Mortiz Siebert.
Last but not least the festival will screen the winners of the Golden Bear for Best Short; “Batrachian’s Ballad” (Portugal) by Leonor Teles, and...
- 2/24/2016
- by Sebastian Nadilo
- AsianMoviePulse
Johnnie To-produced Trivisa and Yang Qing’s Chongqing Hotpot will open this year’s Hong Kong International Film Festival (March 21-April 4), while Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Creepy will close the event.
Chongqing Hotpot, which receives its world premiere at Hkiff, follows three high school classmates who open a hotpot restaurant and their adventures when the business fails.
Trivisa, which recently premiered at the Berlin film festival, is a gangster tale co-directed by Johnnie To proteges Frank Hui, Vicky Wong and Jevons Au. Kurosawa’s thriller Creepy, starring Hidetoshi Nishijima as a dectective investigating his neighbour, also premiered in Berlin.
In total, the festival will screen 240 titles including 63 world, international and Asian premieres. Highlights include a retrospective of Wong Kar Wai’s Jet Tone Films, celebrating the company’s 25th anniversary, and a spotlight on Korean cinema which will screen Kwon Oh-kwang’s Collective Invention, E J-yong’s The Bacchus Lady, Im Kwon-taek...
Chongqing Hotpot, which receives its world premiere at Hkiff, follows three high school classmates who open a hotpot restaurant and their adventures when the business fails.
Trivisa, which recently premiered at the Berlin film festival, is a gangster tale co-directed by Johnnie To proteges Frank Hui, Vicky Wong and Jevons Au. Kurosawa’s thriller Creepy, starring Hidetoshi Nishijima as a dectective investigating his neighbour, also premiered in Berlin.
In total, the festival will screen 240 titles including 63 world, international and Asian premieres. Highlights include a retrospective of Wong Kar Wai’s Jet Tone Films, celebrating the company’s 25th anniversary, and a spotlight on Korean cinema which will screen Kwon Oh-kwang’s Collective Invention, E J-yong’s The Bacchus Lady, Im Kwon-taek...
- 2/24/2016
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Gianfranco Rosi’s Golden Bear winner faced off challenges from Jeff Nichols, Mia Hansen-Love and Mohamed Ben Attia.
Fire At Sea, Gianfranco Rosi’s migrant crisis documentary set on the Mediterranean island of Lampedusa, has topped Screen’s final Berlin Jury Grid for 2016.
Screen’s jury of international critics were in tune with the Berlinale’s international jury, led this year by Oscar-winning actress Meryl Steep, which awarded the film with the coveted Golden Bear for Best Film.
Fire At Sea led for the majority of the festival after scoring an impressive 3.3 rating, including five maximum four-star ratings.
Second place was tied by three titles, with Mohamed Ben Attia’s Hedi, Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special and Mia Hansen-Love’s Things To Come each clocking scores of 2.9.
Further titles to score an above-average rating were Lav Diaz’s eight-hour epic A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mystery with 2.8 (averaged from five submitted ratings) and Alex Gibney’s cyber warfare...
Fire At Sea, Gianfranco Rosi’s migrant crisis documentary set on the Mediterranean island of Lampedusa, has topped Screen’s final Berlin Jury Grid for 2016.
Screen’s jury of international critics were in tune with the Berlinale’s international jury, led this year by Oscar-winning actress Meryl Steep, which awarded the film with the coveted Golden Bear for Best Film.
Fire At Sea led for the majority of the festival after scoring an impressive 3.3 rating, including five maximum four-star ratings.
Second place was tied by three titles, with Mohamed Ben Attia’s Hedi, Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special and Mia Hansen-Love’s Things To Come each clocking scores of 2.9.
Further titles to score an above-average rating were Lav Diaz’s eight-hour epic A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mystery with 2.8 (averaged from five submitted ratings) and Alex Gibney’s cyber warfare...
- 2/22/2016
- ScreenDaily
International Jury
Silver Bear “Alfred Bauer” Prize
Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis (A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery) by Lav Diaz
Philippines | 2016 – 485 min.
Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro is considered to be one of the most influential proponents in the struggle against Spanish colonial rule in the Philippines during the late nineteenth century. Today, he is still celebrated as the father of the Philippine Revolution. Director Lav Diaz examines this myth and undertakes another expedition into the eventful history of his native land. The film’s various loosely interwoven narrative threads are held together by an exploration of the role of the individual in history and their involvement in political and social developments. Bonifacio’s widow is searching for her husband’s missing dead body; as she and her followers stumble deeper into the jungle, they become entangled in the dense thicket of their own guilt and responsibility. The Spanish governor...
Silver Bear “Alfred Bauer” Prize
Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis (A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery) by Lav Diaz
Philippines | 2016 – 485 min.
Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro is considered to be one of the most influential proponents in the struggle against Spanish colonial rule in the Philippines during the late nineteenth century. Today, he is still celebrated as the father of the Philippine Revolution. Director Lav Diaz examines this myth and undertakes another expedition into the eventful history of his native land. The film’s various loosely interwoven narrative threads are held together by an exploration of the role of the individual in history and their involvement in political and social developments. Bonifacio’s widow is searching for her husband’s missing dead body; as she and her followers stumble deeper into the jungle, they become entangled in the dense thicket of their own guilt and responsibility. The Spanish governor...
- 2/21/2016
- by Sebastian Nadilo
- AsianMoviePulse
Documentary Fire At Sea wins Golden Bear; Death In Sarajevo wins Jury PrizeWinners of 66th Berlin International Film FestivalGolden Bear for Best Film
Fire At Sea (It-Fr), dir. Gianfranco Rosi
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize
Death In Sarajevo (Fr-Bos), dir. Danis Tanovic
Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize
A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mystery (Phil-Sing), dir. Lav Diaz
Silver Bear for Best Director
Mia Hansen-Love for Things To Come
Silver Bear for Best Actress
Trine Dyrholm in The Commune
Silver Bear for Best Actor
Majd Mastoura in Hedi
Silver Bear for Best Script
Tomasz Wasilewski for United States Of Love (Pol-Swe), dir. Tomasz Wasilewski
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution
Mark Lee Ping-bing for cinematography of Crosscurrent (China), dir. Yang Chao
Best First Feature Award (€50,000)
Hedi (Tun-Bel-Fr), Mohamed Ben Attia
Golden Bear for Best Short Film
Batrachian’s Ballad (Balada de um Batráquio), Leonor Teles, Portugal
Berlin Short Film Nominee for the EFAs
A Man Returned, [link...
Fire At Sea (It-Fr), dir. Gianfranco Rosi
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize
Death In Sarajevo (Fr-Bos), dir. Danis Tanovic
Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize
A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mystery (Phil-Sing), dir. Lav Diaz
Silver Bear for Best Director
Mia Hansen-Love for Things To Come
Silver Bear for Best Actress
Trine Dyrholm in The Commune
Silver Bear for Best Actor
Majd Mastoura in Hedi
Silver Bear for Best Script
Tomasz Wasilewski for United States Of Love (Pol-Swe), dir. Tomasz Wasilewski
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution
Mark Lee Ping-bing for cinematography of Crosscurrent (China), dir. Yang Chao
Best First Feature Award (€50,000)
Hedi (Tun-Bel-Fr), Mohamed Ben Attia
Golden Bear for Best Short Film
Batrachian’s Ballad (Balada de um Batráquio), Leonor Teles, Portugal
Berlin Short Film Nominee for the EFAs
A Man Returned, [link...
- 2/20/2016
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
The Golden and Silver Bears are set to be awarded shortly. Keep up with the latest here…
Refresh the page for the latest
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize
Death In Sarajevo (Fr-Bos), dir. Danis Tanovic
Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize
A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mystery (Phil-Sing), dir. Lav Diaz
Silver Bear for Best Director
Mia Hansen-Love for Things To Come
Silver Bear for Best Actress
Trine Dyrholm in The Commune
Silver Bear for Best Actor
Majd Mastoura in Hedi
Silver Bear for Best Script
Tomasz Wasilewski for United States Of Love (Pol-Swe), dir. Tomasz Wasilewski
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution
Mark Lee Ping-bing for cinematography of Crosscurrent (China), dir. Yang Chao
Best First Feature Award (€50,000)
Hedi (Tun-Bel-Fr), Mohamed Ben Attia
Golden Bear for Best Short Film
Batrachian’s Ballad (Balada de um Batráquio), Leonor Teles, Portugal
Berlin Short Film Nominee for the EFAs
A Man Returned, Mahdi Fleifel (UK-Neth-Den)
Audi Short Film Award (€20,000)
Anchorage...
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Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize
Death In Sarajevo (Fr-Bos), dir. Danis Tanovic
Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize
A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mystery (Phil-Sing), dir. Lav Diaz
Silver Bear for Best Director
Mia Hansen-Love for Things To Come
Silver Bear for Best Actress
Trine Dyrholm in The Commune
Silver Bear for Best Actor
Majd Mastoura in Hedi
Silver Bear for Best Script
Tomasz Wasilewski for United States Of Love (Pol-Swe), dir. Tomasz Wasilewski
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution
Mark Lee Ping-bing for cinematography of Crosscurrent (China), dir. Yang Chao
Best First Feature Award (€50,000)
Hedi (Tun-Bel-Fr), Mohamed Ben Attia
Golden Bear for Best Short Film
Batrachian’s Ballad (Balada de um Batráquio), Leonor Teles, Portugal
Berlin Short Film Nominee for the EFAs
A Man Returned, Mahdi Fleifel (UK-Neth-Den)
Audi Short Film Award (€20,000)
Anchorage...
- 2/20/2016
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
CrosscurrentSome works of art, especially in countries beset by heavy censorship, must work in circuitous allusion—poetic, cultural, historical—to say what they feel needs to be said. Those who have been watching the state-approved films by Chinese director Jia Zhangke (including his latest, Mountains May Depart) and films by Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul (including his latest, Cemetery of Splendor) will be familiar with how charged this expressive need and tactic can be. At its best, films such as these burst upon the viewer like the revelation of a secret language whose codex we can spy and begin to piece together—and whose surface qualities, even if cryptic, are felt to be all the more powerful for the sub-currents discernible below and charged from within.But the downside of such a cinematic language results in a picture like Crosscurrent, directed by Yang Chao, which is the Chinese film in Berlin's competition this year.
- 2/20/2016
- by Daniel Kasman
- MUBI
Berlinale director discusses Meryl Streep, Fire At Sea and the digital future.
As the 66th Berlin Film Festival (Feb 11-21) enters its final stretch, festival director Dieter Kosslick believes the two “opposing forces” that drive the festival - red carpets and celebrity attendees versus a “line-up with many wild films” - are working well in his view.
While some of the competition entries have taken a hammering, the films of Mohamed Ben Attia, Jeff Nichols, Mia Hansen-Love, Anne Zohra Berrached, Yang Chao and Alex Gibney have all been well received. And Gianfranco Rosi’s documentary Fire At Sea has become the talk of the festival.
“We didn’t want to do a refugee festival, even if we are in the middle of the mess,” said Kosslick. “But we did want to have a festival where the refugee crisis is a big part. The right of happiness - this is a bigger question for the whole world.”
“It...
As the 66th Berlin Film Festival (Feb 11-21) enters its final stretch, festival director Dieter Kosslick believes the two “opposing forces” that drive the festival - red carpets and celebrity attendees versus a “line-up with many wild films” - are working well in his view.
While some of the competition entries have taken a hammering, the films of Mohamed Ben Attia, Jeff Nichols, Mia Hansen-Love, Anne Zohra Berrached, Yang Chao and Alex Gibney have all been well received. And Gianfranco Rosi’s documentary Fire At Sea has become the talk of the festival.
“We didn’t want to do a refugee festival, even if we are in the middle of the mess,” said Kosslick. “But we did want to have a festival where the refugee crisis is a big part. The right of happiness - this is a bigger question for the whole world.”
“It...
- 2/18/2016
- by matt.mueller@screendaily.com (Matt Mueller)
- ScreenDaily
In today's Berlinale Diary entry, I offer first impressions of Eugène Green's Le Fils de Joseph with Victor Ezenfis, Natacha Régnier, Fabrizio Rongione, Mathieu Amalric and Maria de Medeiros; Wang Bing's Ta'ang, a documentary on refugees crossing the border from Myanmar into China; Yang Chao's years-in-the-making Crosscurrent with Qin Hao, Xin Zhi Lei, Wu Lipeng, Wang Hongwei and Jiang Hualin; and Rafi Pitts's Soy Nero with Johnny Ortiz, Rory Cochrane, Aml Ameen, Darrell Britt-Gibson and Michael Harney. » - David Hudson...
- 2/16/2016
- Keyframe
In today's Berlinale Diary entry, I offer first impressions of Eugène Green's Le Fils de Joseph with Victor Ezenfis, Natacha Régnier, Fabrizio Rongione, Mathieu Amalric and Maria de Medeiros; Wang Bing's Ta'ang, a documentary on refugees crossing the border from Myanmar into China; Yang Chao's years-in-the-making Crosscurrent with Qin Hao, Xin Zhi Lei, Wu Lipeng, Wang Hongwei and Jiang Hualin; and Rafi Pitts's Soy Nero with Johnny Ortiz, Rory Cochrane, Aml Ameen, Darrell Britt-Gibson and Michael Harney. » - David Hudson...
- 2/16/2016
- Fandor: Keyframe
Yang Chao's tale of two lovers woven into the meandering course of the epic Yangtze river is sadly the only Chinese-language film to feature in Berlinale's main competition this year, seeing it follow in the footsteps of Black Coal, Thin Ice and Blind Massage - two films which have made lasting impressions at the film festival in recent years. But this divisive film certainly falls into a similar Chinese New Wave groove thanks to its maddeningly riddle-like nature and strongly ambiguous atmosphere.Coincidentally starring Qin Hao who previously featured in Blind Massage, and also fronted by Xin Zhilei, this film sails along with a three-man barge crew as they transport a mysteriously illegal cargo upstream. Except the captain's journey becomes intertwined with the hauntingly beautiful figure of...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 2/16/2016
- Screen Anarchy
★★★★☆ The Yangtze River has played an important part in Chinese history, bringing life, death and industrial growth to the country. Beijing Film Academy graduate Yang Chao's Crosscurrent uses the river as its driving force, its current acting like the hands of a clock pushing time forward. Traversing China, from the riches of Shanghai's financial hub, to the nation's impoverished hinterlands, Yang combines a daring mix of realism and lyrical fantasy to create a sense of where China is drifting. The narrative of the film is both literally and figuratively framed by the monstrous, eroding landscape of the Yangtze.
- 2/16/2016
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
WW2 drama with Emma Thompson and Brendan Gleeson scores low with the Screen jury.
Vincent Perez’s Second World War drama Alone In Berlin, starring Emma Thompson and Brendan Gleeson, clocked up a new low for the 2016 Screen Berlin Jury Grid.
The film amassed a meagre 1.3 rating from seven reviews, with one yet to be submitted.
Still reigning top is Gianfranco Rosi’s migrant crisis documentary Fire At Sea, which is the only film to have scored over 3 points.
New additions to the grid are Yang Chao’s Crosscurrent, which has a 2.4 rating, including one four-star award from critic Anke Westphal, and Danis Tanovic’s Death In Sarajevo, which has a 2.1 rating. Both titles have one score yet to be submitted.
Second place remains a three-way tie between Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special, Mohamed Ben Attia’s Hedi and Mia Hansen-Love’s Things To Come.
Screening at Berlin today (Feb 16) are Rafi Pitts’ Soy Nero and Michael Grandage’s [link...
Vincent Perez’s Second World War drama Alone In Berlin, starring Emma Thompson and Brendan Gleeson, clocked up a new low for the 2016 Screen Berlin Jury Grid.
The film amassed a meagre 1.3 rating from seven reviews, with one yet to be submitted.
Still reigning top is Gianfranco Rosi’s migrant crisis documentary Fire At Sea, which is the only film to have scored over 3 points.
New additions to the grid are Yang Chao’s Crosscurrent, which has a 2.4 rating, including one four-star award from critic Anke Westphal, and Danis Tanovic’s Death In Sarajevo, which has a 2.1 rating. Both titles have one score yet to be submitted.
Second place remains a three-way tie between Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special, Mohamed Ben Attia’s Hedi and Mia Hansen-Love’s Things To Come.
Screening at Berlin today (Feb 16) are Rafi Pitts’ Soy Nero and Michael Grandage’s [link...
- 2/16/2016
- ScreenDaily
WW2 drama with Emma Thompson and Brendan Gleeson failed to impress Screen’s jury.
Vincent Perez’s Second World War drama Alone In Berlin, starring Emma Thompson and Brendan Gleeson, clocked up a new low for the 2016 Screen Berlin Jury Grid.
The film amassed a meagre 1.3 rating from seven reviews, with one yet to be submitted.
Still reigning top is Gianfranco Rosi’s migrant crisis documentary Fire At Sea, which is the only film to have scored over 3 points.
New additions to the grid are Yang Chao’s Crosscurrent, which has a 2.4 rating, including one four-star award from critic Anke Westphal, and Danis Tanovic’s Death In Sarajevo, which has a 2.1 rating. Both titles have one score yet to be submitted.
Second place remains a three-way tie between Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special, Mohamed Ben Attia’s Hedi and Mia Hansen-Love’s Things To Come.
Screening at Berlin today (Feb 16) are Rafi Pitts’ Soy Nero and Michael Grandage’s [link...
Vincent Perez’s Second World War drama Alone In Berlin, starring Emma Thompson and Brendan Gleeson, clocked up a new low for the 2016 Screen Berlin Jury Grid.
The film amassed a meagre 1.3 rating from seven reviews, with one yet to be submitted.
Still reigning top is Gianfranco Rosi’s migrant crisis documentary Fire At Sea, which is the only film to have scored over 3 points.
New additions to the grid are Yang Chao’s Crosscurrent, which has a 2.4 rating, including one four-star award from critic Anke Westphal, and Danis Tanovic’s Death In Sarajevo, which has a 2.1 rating. Both titles have one score yet to be submitted.
Second place remains a three-way tie between Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special, Mohamed Ben Attia’s Hedi and Mia Hansen-Love’s Things To Come.
Screening at Berlin today (Feb 16) are Rafi Pitts’ Soy Nero and Michael Grandage’s [link...
- 2/16/2016
- ScreenDaily
Fire At Sea comfortably remained top of the pile, with the new entries failing to post significant scores.
Sunday’s three new entries on the 2016 Berlinale Screen Jury Grid all proved divisive, picking up mixed scores across the board.
Andre Techine’s Being 17 scored the first X (no score) of the festival, from Anton Dolin, though also clocked up a top-rating courtesy of David Fear. Overall it rated 2.5, though there are two scores yet to be declared.
Ivo Ferreira’s Letters From War posted a slightly better 2.6 overall, including two top ratings from Jan Schulz-Ojala and Screen.
Anne Zohra Berrached’s 24 Weeks languished to a rating of 2.3, the second lowest score to date behind Denis Cote’s Boris Without Beatrice.
Still topping the table is Gianfranco Rosi’ documentary Fire At Sea.
Monday’s titles are Denis Tanovic’s Death In Sarajevo, Vincent Perez’s Alone In Berlin and Yang Chao’s Crosscurrent.
Sunday’s three new entries on the 2016 Berlinale Screen Jury Grid all proved divisive, picking up mixed scores across the board.
Andre Techine’s Being 17 scored the first X (no score) of the festival, from Anton Dolin, though also clocked up a top-rating courtesy of David Fear. Overall it rated 2.5, though there are two scores yet to be declared.
Ivo Ferreira’s Letters From War posted a slightly better 2.6 overall, including two top ratings from Jan Schulz-Ojala and Screen.
Anne Zohra Berrached’s 24 Weeks languished to a rating of 2.3, the second lowest score to date behind Denis Cote’s Boris Without Beatrice.
Still topping the table is Gianfranco Rosi’ documentary Fire At Sea.
Monday’s titles are Denis Tanovic’s Death In Sarajevo, Vincent Perez’s Alone In Berlin and Yang Chao’s Crosscurrent.
- 2/15/2016
- ScreenDaily
Anyone doubting the effectiveness of Rotterdam’s Hubert Bals Fund need only look at the make-up of next month’s Berlinale competition.
There are no fewer than three Hbf-backed features in the hunt for this year’s Golden Bear: Lav Diaz’s A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mission, Cross Current by Yang Chao and Inhebbek Hedi (Hedi) by Mohamed Ben Attia
Hbf provides grants to filmmakers from Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and parts of Eastern Europe. The Fund, established in 1989, takes its name from the Festival’s founder, Hubert Bals, and has long been recognised as an integral part of what Iffr offers.
A total of 13 titles in Rotterdam’s programme were made with Hbf support. That, suggests Iwana Chronis, Manager Hbf, is “about average”.
Four are world premieres including two Tiger competition contenders, La Ultima Tierra from Pablo Lamar (Paraguay) and Oscura Animal from Felipe Guerrero (Colombia.) Both of these...
There are no fewer than three Hbf-backed features in the hunt for this year’s Golden Bear: Lav Diaz’s A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mission, Cross Current by Yang Chao and Inhebbek Hedi (Hedi) by Mohamed Ben Attia
Hbf provides grants to filmmakers from Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and parts of Eastern Europe. The Fund, established in 1989, takes its name from the Festival’s founder, Hubert Bals, and has long been recognised as an integral part of what Iffr offers.
A total of 13 titles in Rotterdam’s programme were made with Hbf support. That, suggests Iwana Chronis, Manager Hbf, is “about average”.
Four are world premieres including two Tiger competition contenders, La Ultima Tierra from Pablo Lamar (Paraguay) and Oscura Animal from Felipe Guerrero (Colombia.) Both of these...
- 1/29/2016
- by geoffrey@macnab.demon.co.uk (Geoffrey Macnab)
- ScreenDaily
The Berlinale's announced that the Competition lineup for its 66th edition (February 11 through 21) is now complete. The titles added today are Anne Zohra Berrached's 24 Weeks, Yang Chao's Crosscurrent, Spike Lee's Chi-Raq, Dominik Moll's News from Planet Mars, Mohamed Ben Attia's Hedi, Lee Tamahori's The Patriarch, Benoît Delépine and Gustave Kervern's Saint Amour with Gérard Depardieu, Benoît Poelvoorde, Vincent Lacoste and Céline Sallette, and Rafi Pitts's Soy Nero. We're collecting notes on the new additions. » - David Hudson...
- 1/20/2016
- Keyframe
The Berlinale's announced that the Competition lineup for its 66th edition (February 11 through 21) is now complete. The titles added today are Anne Zohra Berrached's 24 Weeks, Yang Chao's Crosscurrent, Spike Lee's Chi-Raq, Dominik Moll's News from Planet Mars, Mohamed Ben Attia's Hedi, Lee Tamahori's The Patriarch, Benoît Delépine and Gustave Kervern's Saint Amour with Gérard Depardieu, Benoît Poelvoorde, Vincent Lacoste and Céline Sallette, and Rafi Pitts's Soy Nero. We're collecting notes on the new additions. » - David Hudson...
- 1/20/2016
- Fandor: Keyframe
New films from Lee Tamahori and Anne Zohra Berrached also added.
The Berlin International Film Festival (Feb 11-21) has completed the line-up of its Competiton programme, of which 18 out of 23 will vye for the Golden and Silver Bears. A total of 19 titles of the films are world premieres.
Spike Lee’s Chi-Raq will receive its international premiere as part of the strand, but will play out of competition.
The film stars Nick Cannon, Teyonah Parris and Wesley Snipes, and is a modern day adaptation of the ancient Greek play Lysistrata by Aristophanes, set against the backdrop of gang violence in Chicago.
Germany’s Anne Zohra Berrached, who premiered Two Mothers at the Berlinale’s Perspektive Deutsches Kino in 2013, returns with 24 Weeks (24 Wochen). The film centres on the dilemma faced by a woman who is already six months pregnant when she learns that her unborn child will have Down‘s syndrome as well as a serious heart defect...
The Berlin International Film Festival (Feb 11-21) has completed the line-up of its Competiton programme, of which 18 out of 23 will vye for the Golden and Silver Bears. A total of 19 titles of the films are world premieres.
Spike Lee’s Chi-Raq will receive its international premiere as part of the strand, but will play out of competition.
The film stars Nick Cannon, Teyonah Parris and Wesley Snipes, and is a modern day adaptation of the ancient Greek play Lysistrata by Aristophanes, set against the backdrop of gang violence in Chicago.
Germany’s Anne Zohra Berrached, who premiered Two Mothers at the Berlinale’s Perspektive Deutsches Kino in 2013, returns with 24 Weeks (24 Wochen). The film centres on the dilemma faced by a woman who is already six months pregnant when she learns that her unborn child will have Down‘s syndrome as well as a serious heart defect...
- 1/20/2016
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
The Berlin film festival has finalized its competition lineup, adding final titles that will compete for this year's Gold and Silver Bears. 24 Weeks by Anne Zohra Berrached (Two Mothers) and Yang Chao's Crosscurrent are among the new titles announced on Wednesday. Hedi, the directorial debut of Tunisian filmmaker Mohamed Ben Attia, and Soy Neo, the latest from Iranian director Rafi Pitts, whose last two features, The Hunter and It's Winter both premiered in Berlin, complete the competition lineup. Meanwhile, Spike Lee's Chi-Raq and Lee Tamahori's The Patriarch will get out-of-competition gala screenings in Berlin. Other
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- 1/20/2016
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
CANNES -- Yang Chao's evocative road picture begins with an atmospheric shot of a railway station that, aside from Zhang Xigui's beautiful color cinematography, might have come from a 1930s John Ford film. The specific railway sounds too, by Li Zhi, add to the mixture of loneliness and freedom that railroads inspire.
This mood of conflicting emotions hovers throughout the film as two young students ride the rails, hitchhike and ride bicycles, buses and boats in a mostly circular journey toward their destiny.
Audiences used to the snap and crackle of Hollywood films will be restless with the film's deliberate pace, but patient viewers will be rewarded with a thoughtful contemplation of how difficult it is to throw over the constraints of a tightly controlled society.
Yang takes his time telling the story of Chen Xi Su (Geng Le) and Xiao Ping (Chang Jieping) as they flout convention and flee their families and school in order to break free of the stifling restrictions of tradition and expectation.
At first, the pair journey to a far-off place to purchase the means to develop Linzhi mushrooms, a rare medicinal plant, which they are led to believe can make them a small fortune. It turns out to be a scam, but being naive and gullible, they soon try another route to quick money, only to be fooled again.
Without money, their only option is to return home, where Xi Su's parents despair of his attending college and fulfilling the promise of a responsible and intelligent son. Xiao is more fearful of a beating from her stern brother.
Three times they throw off the discreet shackles of their upbringing to venture into the vast Chinese countryside, and only very slowly, at the end, are they forced to confront the daunting question of whether to take the path less traveled.
Yang shot the film in the provinces of Henan, Hubei and Shanxi, about 400 kilometers west of Shanghai. The haunting landscape is vital to his storytelling as the two lost youngsters journey through pre- and post-industrial regions encountering many strange things. These include a mystic who jumps from a bridge and survives, a gangster who erupts in sudden violence and a genial thief in the middle of a truck hijacking. The director keeps all these at arm's length, enhancing the claustrophobia the young couple seeks to escape.
Geng, who has something of the young Gregory Peck about him, and Chang are not immediately ingratiating, but in the course of their travels, Yang lets us see the characters more completely. By the time they make their final choices, it's impossible not to want to know what happens to them.
Passages
Century Hero Film Investment Co., CITIC Cultural & Sports Industry Co. Ltd., Asian Union Film Co. Ltd. and Infinitely Practical Production
Credits: Director-screenwriter: Yang Chao; Executive producers: Li Bolun, Dong Ping; Director of photography: Zhang Xigui; Sound designer: Li Zhi; Music: An Wei; Production designer: Zhang Danqing; Art consultant: Xie Fei; Editor: Xue Fangmin; Costume designer: Cai Lizhen. Cast: Chen Xi Su: Geng Le; Xiao Ping: Chang Jieping.
No MPAA rating, running time 114 minutes.
This mood of conflicting emotions hovers throughout the film as two young students ride the rails, hitchhike and ride bicycles, buses and boats in a mostly circular journey toward their destiny.
Audiences used to the snap and crackle of Hollywood films will be restless with the film's deliberate pace, but patient viewers will be rewarded with a thoughtful contemplation of how difficult it is to throw over the constraints of a tightly controlled society.
Yang takes his time telling the story of Chen Xi Su (Geng Le) and Xiao Ping (Chang Jieping) as they flout convention and flee their families and school in order to break free of the stifling restrictions of tradition and expectation.
At first, the pair journey to a far-off place to purchase the means to develop Linzhi mushrooms, a rare medicinal plant, which they are led to believe can make them a small fortune. It turns out to be a scam, but being naive and gullible, they soon try another route to quick money, only to be fooled again.
Without money, their only option is to return home, where Xi Su's parents despair of his attending college and fulfilling the promise of a responsible and intelligent son. Xiao is more fearful of a beating from her stern brother.
Three times they throw off the discreet shackles of their upbringing to venture into the vast Chinese countryside, and only very slowly, at the end, are they forced to confront the daunting question of whether to take the path less traveled.
Yang shot the film in the provinces of Henan, Hubei and Shanxi, about 400 kilometers west of Shanghai. The haunting landscape is vital to his storytelling as the two lost youngsters journey through pre- and post-industrial regions encountering many strange things. These include a mystic who jumps from a bridge and survives, a gangster who erupts in sudden violence and a genial thief in the middle of a truck hijacking. The director keeps all these at arm's length, enhancing the claustrophobia the young couple seeks to escape.
Geng, who has something of the young Gregory Peck about him, and Chang are not immediately ingratiating, but in the course of their travels, Yang lets us see the characters more completely. By the time they make their final choices, it's impossible not to want to know what happens to them.
Passages
Century Hero Film Investment Co., CITIC Cultural & Sports Industry Co. Ltd., Asian Union Film Co. Ltd. and Infinitely Practical Production
Credits: Director-screenwriter: Yang Chao; Executive producers: Li Bolun, Dong Ping; Director of photography: Zhang Xigui; Sound designer: Li Zhi; Music: An Wei; Production designer: Zhang Danqing; Art consultant: Xie Fei; Editor: Xue Fangmin; Costume designer: Cai Lizhen. Cast: Chen Xi Su: Geng Le; Xiao Ping: Chang Jieping.
No MPAA rating, running time 114 minutes.
CANNES -- Yang Chao's evocative road picture begins with an atmospheric shot of a railway station that, aside from Zhang Xigui's beautiful color cinematography, might have come from a 1930s John Ford film. The specific railway sounds too, by Li Zhi, add to the mixture of loneliness and freedom that railroads inspire.
This mood of conflicting emotions hovers throughout the film as two young students ride the rails, hitchhike and ride bicycles, buses and boats in a mostly circular journey toward their destiny.
Audiences used to the snap and crackle of Hollywood films will be restless with the film's deliberate pace, but patient viewers will be rewarded with a thoughtful contemplation of how difficult it is to throw over the constraints of a tightly controlled society.
Yang takes his time telling the story of Chen Xi Su (Geng Le) and Xiao Ping Chang Jieping) as they flout convention and flee their families and school in order to break free of the stifling restrictions of tradition and expectation.
At first, the pair journey to a far-off place to purchase the means to develop Linzhi mushrooms, a rare medicinal plant, which they are led to believe can make them a small fortune. It turns out to be a scam, but being naive and gullible, they soon try another route to quick money, only to be fooled again.
Without money, their only option is to return home, where Xi Su's parents despair of his attending college and fulfilling the promise of a responsible and intelligent son. Xiao is more fearful of a beating from her stern brother.
Three times they throw off the discreet shackles of their upbringing to venture into the vast Chinese countryside, and only very slowly, at the end, are they forced to confront the daunting question of whether to take the path less traveled.
Yang shot the film in the provinces of Henan, Hubei and Shanxi, about 400 kilometers west of Shanghai. The haunting landscape is vital to his storytelling as the two lost youngsters journey through pre- and post-industrial regions encountering many strange things. These include a mystic who jumps from a bridge and survives, a gangster who erupts in sudden violence and a genial thief in the middle of a truck hijacking. The director keeps all these at arm's length, enhancing the claustrophobia the young couple seeks to escape.
Geng, who has something of the young Gregory Peck about him, and Chang are not immediately ingratiating, but in the course of their travels, Yang lets us see the characters more completely. By the time they make their final choices, it's impossible not to want to know what happens to them.
Passages
Century Hero Film Investment Co., CITIC Cultural & Sports Industry Co. Ltd., Asian Union Film Co. Ltd. and Infinitely Practical Production
Credits: Director-screenwriter: Yang Chao; Executive producers: Li Bolun, Dong Ping; Director of photography: Zhang Xigui; Sound designer: Li Zhi; Music: An Wei; Production designer: Zhang Danqing; Art consultant: Xie Fei; Editor: Xue Fangmin; Costume designer: Cai Lizhen. Cast: Chen Xi Su: Geng Le; Xiao Ping: Chang Jieping.
No MPAA rating, running time 114 minutes.
This mood of conflicting emotions hovers throughout the film as two young students ride the rails, hitchhike and ride bicycles, buses and boats in a mostly circular journey toward their destiny.
Audiences used to the snap and crackle of Hollywood films will be restless with the film's deliberate pace, but patient viewers will be rewarded with a thoughtful contemplation of how difficult it is to throw over the constraints of a tightly controlled society.
Yang takes his time telling the story of Chen Xi Su (Geng Le) and Xiao Ping Chang Jieping) as they flout convention and flee their families and school in order to break free of the stifling restrictions of tradition and expectation.
At first, the pair journey to a far-off place to purchase the means to develop Linzhi mushrooms, a rare medicinal plant, which they are led to believe can make them a small fortune. It turns out to be a scam, but being naive and gullible, they soon try another route to quick money, only to be fooled again.
Without money, their only option is to return home, where Xi Su's parents despair of his attending college and fulfilling the promise of a responsible and intelligent son. Xiao is more fearful of a beating from her stern brother.
Three times they throw off the discreet shackles of their upbringing to venture into the vast Chinese countryside, and only very slowly, at the end, are they forced to confront the daunting question of whether to take the path less traveled.
Yang shot the film in the provinces of Henan, Hubei and Shanxi, about 400 kilometers west of Shanghai. The haunting landscape is vital to his storytelling as the two lost youngsters journey through pre- and post-industrial regions encountering many strange things. These include a mystic who jumps from a bridge and survives, a gangster who erupts in sudden violence and a genial thief in the middle of a truck hijacking. The director keeps all these at arm's length, enhancing the claustrophobia the young couple seeks to escape.
Geng, who has something of the young Gregory Peck about him, and Chang are not immediately ingratiating, but in the course of their travels, Yang lets us see the characters more completely. By the time they make their final choices, it's impossible not to want to know what happens to them.
Passages
Century Hero Film Investment Co., CITIC Cultural & Sports Industry Co. Ltd., Asian Union Film Co. Ltd. and Infinitely Practical Production
Credits: Director-screenwriter: Yang Chao; Executive producers: Li Bolun, Dong Ping; Director of photography: Zhang Xigui; Sound designer: Li Zhi; Music: An Wei; Production designer: Zhang Danqing; Art consultant: Xie Fei; Editor: Xue Fangmin; Costume designer: Cai Lizhen. Cast: Chen Xi Su: Geng Le; Xiao Ping: Chang Jieping.
No MPAA rating, running time 114 minutes.
- 5/15/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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