Di jiu tian chang
Bis dann, mein Sohn
Maverick Chinese director Wang Xiaoshuai, whose first film THE DAYS was screened at the 1994 Viennale, returns with this three-hour masterpiece for which both his lead actress Yong Mei and his lead actor Wang Jinchun were awarded a Silver Bear in Berlin. The original title means “forever and ever” and is a line from the Chinese version of the old friendship song “Auld Lang Syne” which was, of course, not allowed to be sung in the 1980’s People’s Republic for being too sentimental. In that same era, Yaojun und Liyun are a young couple whose son Xingxing dies in a terrible accident after being bullied by Haohao, the son of their best friends and coworkers. To overcome their grief, Yaojun und Liyun move to the north of China and adopt a boy who they desperately try to shape into another Xingxing – which, as they find out the hard way, doesn’t work out. Wang’s utterly convincing, deeply moving story is told via a quite demanding non-linear narrative that incorporates flashbacks and leaps in time. While it tackles all the issues that have been affecting China over the past 30 years, from the one-child policy to the radical changes in economy and society, Wang never loses touch with his protagonists who, as we can clearly see, have his full attention and sympathy. (Andreas Ungerböck)
- Wang Jingchun - Liu Yaojun
- Yong Mei - Wang Liyun
- Ai Liya - Li Haiyan
- Qi Xi - Shen Moli
- Wang Yuan - 16-jährige Liu Xing
- Du Jiang - Shen Hao
- X Cheng - Shen Yingming
- Li Jingjing - Gao Meiyu
- Zhao Yanguozhang - Zhang Xinjian
- A Mei
- Wang Xiaoshuai
- Kim Hyun-seok
- Fu Kang
- Lee Chatametikool
- Dong Yingda
- Lv Dong
The Match Factory
