IMDb > Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (2002)
Xiao cai feng
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Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (2002) More at IMDbPro »Xiao cai feng (original title)

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Overview

User Rating:
7.1/10   2,818 votes »
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Down 2% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Sijie Dai (novel)
Sijie Dai (screenplay)
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
9 October 2002 (France) See more »
Genre:
Plot:
Two youths sent for a Maoist "re-education" in the mountains fall in love with the village tailor's granddaughter. Full summary » | Add synopsis »
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 6 nominations See more »
NewsDesk:
Movies that suck: an obsession
 (From The Guardian - Film News. 22 December 2011, 4:05 PM, PST)

User Reviews:
Beautifully understated See more (44 total) »

Cast

  (in credits order) (complete, awaiting verification)
Xun Zhou ... Little Chinese Seamstress

Ye Liu ... Ma

Kun Chen ... Luo
Shuangbao Wang ... Head of the Village
Zhijun Cong ... Old Tailor
Hongwei Wang ... Four Eyes
Xiong Xiao ... Mother of Four Eyes
Zuohui Tang ... Old Mill Worker
Wei Chen ... Wife of the Head of the Village
Tianlu Chen ... Director of the Commune
Qing-yun Fan ... Doctor
Jie Min ... Peasant
He Zhang ... Peasant
Yukun Xu ... Peasant
Lina Mei ... Female Villager
Jing Fang ... Female Villager
Li Peng ... Female Villager
Heng Fei Zhao ... Female Villager
Yao Liu ... Female Villager
Yulin Chen ... Female Villager
Chun Hua Xu ... Female Villager
Fang Zong Zhao ... Female Villager
Wa Su ... Daughter in Law of the Head of the Village
Quilène Boileux ... Airport Shop Assistant
Dandan Yang ... Mrs. Lao
Guy-Pierre Bennet ... Journalist (voice)
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Directed by
Sijie Dai 
 
Writing credits
(in alphabetical order)
Sijie Dai  novel
Sijie Dai  screenplay
Nadine Perront 

Produced by
Lise Fayolle .... producer
Bernard Lorain .... executive producer
Pujian Wang .... executive producer
Wang Zhebin .... executive producer
 
Original Music by
Pujian Wang 
 
Cinematography by
Jean-Marie Dreujou 
 
Film Editing by
Luc Barnier 
Julia Gregory 
 
Production Design by
Juiping Cao 
 
Costume Design by
Huamiao Tong 
 
Makeup Department
Guihua Cheng .... hair stylist
 
Production Management
Zi An .... unit manager: Shanghai
Fanny Bourdillon .... unit manager
Lewu Chen .... unit manager
Boutboul Déborah .... unit manager
Xiong Jiang .... unit manager: Shanghai
Shenlin Li .... unit manager
Benoît Ouvrier-Bonnaz .... unit manager
Zhong Yuan Qian .... unit manager
Yulong Shen .... unit manager: Shanghai
Roland Thénot .... unit manager
Jing-Hua Wang .... unit manager
Qiang Wang .... unit manager
Dong Lai Wei .... unit manager: Shanghai
Hong Wu .... unit manager
Chenhao Yu .... unit manager
Jun Zhao .... production manager
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jen Chang Hsien .... assistant director
Guang Li .... assistant director
Charles Liu Morel .... assistant director
Chunlin Zhao .... assistant director
 
Art Department
Baihan Hui .... set dresser
Jian-An Lu .... set dresser
Hailiang Luo .... set dresser
Ying Ma .... assistant art director
Zhang Tian .... props
Zhuangchun Wu .... props
Jian Qun Zhang .... assistant art director
 
Sound Department
Jean-Philippe Callet .... sound recordist
Jean De Sagey .... foley recordist
Franck Desmoulins .... ProTools consultant
Rodolphe Duhamel .... sound recordist
Li Pei Gen .... assistant sound
Benjamin Leloch .... sound recordist (as Benjamin Le Loch)
François Lepeuple .... foley artist
Sylvain Malbrant .... assistant sound editor
Olivier Marlangeon .... foley artist
Michel Monier .... stereo sound consultant: Dolby
Nicolas Naegelen .... sound mixer
Nicolas Naegelen .... sound
Daniel Sobrino .... sound
Zhe Wang .... assistant sound
Li Wen .... assistant sound
Lala Wu .... sound
Xin Zhan .... sound
 
Visual Effects by
Stephane Bidault .... digital effects supervisor
Pierre Blain .... digital effects director
Marc-André Brunet .... visual effects
Christophe Chanvin .... artistic director
Alain Fauchon .... optical transfer
Matthias Weber .... visual effects
 
Stunts
Hui Xie .... stunt double: swimming
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Te Ba .... grip
Paul-Claude Bessière .... key grip
Renaud Chassaing .... first assistant camera
Dong Cong .... electrician
Zhang Dahai .... electrician
Zhao Danyang .... electrician
Luo Dong .... still photographer
Wei Guo Dong .... generator operator
Zhang Fengzhu .... grip
Patrick Gasché .... electrician
Liu Guangshun .... grip
Pei Luo .... video assistant
Michele Mattei .... special photographer (as Michèle Mattei)
Yang Ning .... assistant Steadicam operator
Hong Peng .... second assistant camera
Jean-Claude Reux .... gaffer
Chen Zhu Xiang .... Steadicam operator
Niu Yi .... electrician
Lu Zhixin .... electrician
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Zhigang Chen .... dresser
Huani Tong .... dresser
 
Editorial Department
Fleur Augustin .... assistant editor
Fabrice Dequeant .... color timer
Nicolas Duchemin .... assistant editor
Zoé Forget .... post-production coordinator
Alice Godeau .... assistant editor
 
Music Department
Ya Dai .... musician: flute
Can Gao .... musician: violin
Zhang Gaoxiang .... musician: dulcimer
Xiaopei Li .... music recordist
Pujian Wang .... conductor
Jie Min Yan .... musician: Chinese violin
 
Other crew
Tony Krantz .... press attache
Latifa Laarcy .... administrator
Li Liang .... translator
Luc Oeuvray .... administrator
Laurent Renard .... press attache
Rafael Schneider .... making-of director
Dominique Segall .... press attache
Guixin Zhai .... administrator
Xia Zhao .... script supervisor
 
Thanks
Georges Beaume .... thanks
Guy-Pierre Bennet .... thanks
Prune Bergé .... thanks
Dominique Besnehard .... thanks
Florence Bitoun .... thanks
Jacques Bitoun .... thanks
Jean-François Boyer .... thanks
Valérie Boyer .... thanks
Zouhua Chen .... thanks
Brahim Chioua .... thanks
Jean-Marie Duchemin .... thanks
Sylvie El Sayegh .... thanks
Joy Fleury .... thanks
Danièle Heymann .... thanks
Guy Joussemet .... thanks
Monique Kouznekzoff .... thanks (as Monique Kouznetzoff)
Tony Krantz .... thanks
Anne Kuperberg .... thanks
Pierre Kuperberg .... thanks
Didier Kustinger .... thanks
Archie Larochie .... thanks (as Archie Laroche)
Xin-Min Long .... thanks
Yong Luo .... thanks
Zitian Luo .... thanks
Denis Offroy .... thanks
Isabelle Peyrefitte .... thanks
Bernard Pivot .... special thanks
Marie-Françoise Rousset-Rouard .... thanks
Yves Rousset-Rouard .... thanks
Jean-Marie Sénia .... thanks
Anna Maria Tatò .... thanks
Perrine Tézé .... thanks
Shi Zhao .... thanks
 

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Additional Details

Also Known As:
"Xiao cai feng" - France (original title)
"The Little Chinese Seamstress" - International (English title)
See more »
Runtime:
110 min | France:116 min (Cannes Film Festival)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 See more »
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Filming Locations:

Did You Know?

Trivia:
Filming was allowed in China after seven months negotiations with the authorities, but any projection on Chinese territory was banned.See more »
Soundtrack:
DivertissementSee more »

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
38 out of 38 people found the following review useful.
Beautifully understated, 17 March 2006
Author: j30bell (j30bell@yahoo.co.uk) from London, England

This Sino-French film breaks no particular new ground, is not strong on action or drama, and is unlikely to move you either to great joy, or to tears. Despite this, there is something innately satisfying about watching it, which defies casual analysis.

The story centres on two young men, Ma and Luo. Coming from "reactionary bourgeois" families in the city, they are sent by the Chinese authorities for "re-education" to a beautiful yet achingly backward and isolated community in the mountains. There they undertake menial work, live in comparative squalor, but predictably find love in the form of the same woman – known throughout the film simply as "the little seamstress".

While "Balzac…" will win few originality awards, its strength lies in execution.

Sijie Dai manages to tell his story (which is semi-autobiographical) in a straightforward way. The local party chief is ignorant and officious without ever descending into malignancy. Ma and Luo are engaging without being overtly benevolent. The "peasants" are ignorant without being stupid. As love blossoms, the emotion of the film moves from repression to longing.

There are some wonderful, poignant moments in the film too, which underscore the mood. The local party chief exclaims early in the film "revolutionary peasants will never be corrupted by filthy bourgeois chicken"; Ma and Luo are sent to the cinema with instructions to tell the story to the village on their return; the little seamstress comments wistfully that she can "see planes flying overhead, and wonder to what far cities they are going" reminding us painfully that this is the 1960s not the 1860s.

Mostly, though, the audience is reminded of the futility of repression; the insatiable thirst for knowledge and new ideas, even among the villagers who are transfixed by the basic choices to be found in a city-boy's cookbook.

The cinematography is also wonderful. Apart from the flood sequence at the end, there is nothing flashy about it (and, given the scenery, it's possible that even I could do a fair job of making the film look pretty) but it is precisely the understated nature of the cinematography that I loved.

If the film has any particular weakness, its end (at least in terms of the Phoenix Mountain segment) is abrupt and seems not to follow logically from what has gone before. This is a small criticism though.

Many films today, even the good ones, seem to force their themes upon the audience by brute force, yet upon leaving the cinema, there seems little to talk about or ruminate over. "Balzac…", at least for me, was the opposite. Its light touch has worked its way into my unguarded consciousness. It is a welcome guest, and long may it stay.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (2002)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Question about the language for US release... mippolit
For those that have read the book... manny_the_uncanny
If only ... (humour) Red_Menace
Wow- what a film..exceptionally moving ledgehall
'We both loved her, but in diferent ways' xlaituvalmetx
What happened to The Little Seamstress? WriteTheOtherWay
See more »

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