IMDb > Lan yu (2001)

Overview

User Rating:
7.0/10   1,002 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 33% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writer:
Jimmy Ngai (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for Lan yu on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
22 November 2001 (Hong Kong) more
Genre:
Plot:
Beijing, 1988. On the cusp of middle-age, Chen Handong has known little but success all his life. The eldest son of a senior government bureaucrat... more | add synopsis
Awards:
8 wins & 12 nominations more
NewsDesk:
Chinese Art-House Auteur to Do Sci-Fi?
 (From CinemaSpy. 3 August 2009, 9:04 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
Well-crafted drama with a few surprises... more (27 total)

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Ye Liu ... Lan Yu
Jun Hu ... Chen Handong
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Bin Li
Huatong Li ... Liu Zheng
Shuang Li ... Weidong
Fang Lu ... Yonghong
Jin Su ... Lin Jingping
Shaohua Zhang ... Niu Ma
Yongning Zhang ... Daning
more
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Additional Details

MPAA:
Rated R for strong sexual content, nudity and some language.
Runtime:
86 min | Argentina:89 min (Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Sound Mix:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Director Stanley Kwan auditioned more than 100 actors in both China and Hong Kong for two months, finally deciding on Ye Liu based on a photo given by Liu's assistant director from his debut _Postmen in the Mountains (1999)_. more

FAQ

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful.
Well-crafted drama with a few surprises..., 17 September 2003
8/10
Author: David (davidals@msn.com) from Chapel Hill, NC, USA

Generally I'm not a big fan of melodrama, and LAN YU is a classic, Sirk-league piece of melodrama, so I can't say I loved this film. But it is impressive in a number of ways - the depiction of intimacy, and of a slowly-developing relationship is very well done, and this film is very obviously the work of a thoughtful and talented filmmaker. I also liked the cinematography - very un-flashy, which serves the material well: a dry, slice-of-life look which stands apart from the dramatics of the plot, and definitely underscores the normality (or validity) of gay relationships, perhaps in a culture that is still coming to terms with such relationships. The dinner scenes - which are beautifully shot and staged - stand out.

It should be noted that director Stanley Kwan has a handful of other artistically notable films to his credit, with ROUGE and ACTRESS generating acclaim around the globe. Kwan claims Hollywood melodramatist Douglas Sirk and Japanese contemporary dramatist Yasujiro Ozu as major influences, and both of those influences are apparent here - the studied, careful mis-en-scene of Ozu; and a story balanced between social critique and three-hanky melodrama, in the fashion of Sirk. Kwan is also one of a small (but growing) number of out Asian filmmakers, and noting this (and his artistic influences) helps to understand the overall importance of this film.

If some of the most creative and engaging gay film being made today is coming from Asia, Europe and Latin America - which I believe to be true - then this film is definitely among the best of that wave. Worth a look.

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Lan Yu vs. Brokeback Mountain insinyur
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Did Lan Yu date anyone else during Handong's marriage? reiyi
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