Gou zhen

A story about a lonely man finding companionship with a wild, marginalised dog might seem clichéd, but GOU ZHEN approaches its narrative with nuance and depth. The film is set in a remote Chinese village in 2008, just before the Beijing Olympics. Lang 
(Eddie Peng), the protagonist, is a former sports star who returns to his small hometown in the Gobi desert after being released from prison. He speaks very little, adding to his mysterious and stoic nature. Trying to avoid old rivals, Lang starts working for a local squad tasked with ridding the area of stray dogs. Several neighbours pitch in, but one dog—a fierce black hound that gives the film its title—proves uncontrollable. Lang takes on the responsibility of taming this rabid canine, and this challenging process forms the emotional core of the film. Although it may sound like a typical Hollywood story about a man and a dog saving each other, GOU ZHEN offers an unusually subdued and realistic portrayal of their bond. The setting in a remote corner of mid-2000s China, with its rough characters and stark landscapes, adds authenticity and atmosphere to a story that combines elements of the Western, film noir and even the road movie. (Diego Lerer)

Guan Hu: DIRT (1994), CELLO IN A CAB (1996), FAREWELL OUR 1948 (1999), EYES OF A BEAUTY (2002), COW (2009), DESIGN OF DEATH (2012), THE CHEF, THE ACTOR, THE SCOUNDREL (2013), MR. SIX (2015), RUN FOR LOVE (2016), MY PEOPLE, MY COUNTRY (2019), THE EIGHT HUN-DRED (2019), THE SACRIFICE (2020)