R E V I E W :    Suzhou  

Reviewed 4/13/01 | Background | Movie Review | DVD Review | Recommendation

Background 

Winson / 2000 / 82 minutes
Directed by Lou Ye
Written by Lou Ye

The second production from "sixth generation" mainland Chinese director Lou Ye, the film played at the Hong Kong International Film Festival last year and also, I believe, received a brief run in Hong Kong cinemas.

It played in select cities in the United States beginning in November 2000 under the title Suzhou River.

Movie: plot, performances, production, rating

Plot: Basically an obsessive love story involving an anonymous videographer, a motorcycle courier named Mardar, the teenage daughter of a promiscuous criminal (her name is Moudan), and a mermaid (actually a lady called Meimei who plays a mermaid). To say more would lessen the impact.

Performances: The standout here is Zhou Xun as both Moudan and Meimei. She makes each of the characters distinctive and appealing. Jia Hongsheng is also very effective as the troubled Mardar.

Production: The film's shifting point of view, though at times a bit confusing, fits the story like a glove. Most of the time the camera is active (either handheld or Steadicam) and, again, this type of camerawork reflects accurately the jittery, uncertain actions of the characters. The gloom-and-doom look of the film is enhanced by its being set (for the most part) in the warehouse district along the dirty and polluted Suzhou River in Shanghai. When the story strays away from the river, it's into dimly-lit, seedy bars. Bright colors are an exception; most tones are earthen and muddy. The music may seem to be at cross purposes with the overall tone, but the minor-key, sometimes uplifting, sometimes mournful, sounds of a tiny symphony counterpoint the emotional highs and lows of the plot.

Rating: Category IIA. Several suggestive scenes between an adult male and teenage female but no explicit sexuality, violence, or profanity.

DVD: look, sound, subtitles, and features

Look: The DVD's cover description to the contrary, the film is not letterboxed. Nevertheless, the full frame (1.33:1) presentation looks good, with sufficiently deep black levels and an accurately rendered color palette (tending toward the dull side). The flesh tones look natural. The source print exhibits some irritating problems - such as a hair that moves around and is in plain view! The top edge of the frame looks slightly ragged, and an occasional blemish is also evident.

Sound: I listened to the DD 2.0 Mandarin audio track, and it sounded very good. The surrounds are engaged fully during the frequent musical interludes. Also included is a DD 5.1 Mandarin track.

Subtitles: The white (with black backing) removable English subtitles are quite good, easy to read, well-timed, and with just a few mistakes. Also included are subtitles in traditional and simplified Chinese.

Features: Nine chapters can be selected from a menu with video clips. Trailers are provided for Grandma and Her Ghosts, Undercover Blues, Sleeping Bride, and I Do.

Buy, rent, or pass?

Rent: The heart of a fable wrapped in the skin of film noir; it doesn't seem very deep, but leaves a pleasant and thoughtful aftertaste.

 

---

corrections? broken links? criticism? praise? please e-mail webmaster

this site is a non-commercial resource for region 1
original content copyright 2001 peter a. martin all rights reserved