Wu Qingyuan (2006)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Zhuangzhuang Tian

Writer:

Cheng Ah (writer)

Release Date:

2006 (China)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Romance

Plot:

A Chinese man becomes an expert player of the traditional game of Go. |

Plot Keywords:

Game Of Go | Master | Competition | Tuberculosis | Sect

Awards:

3 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Chen Chang	...	Wu Qingyuan
Sylvia Chang	...	Shu Wen - Wu's mother
Akira Emoto	...	Kensaku Segoe
Aki Fujî	...	Mrs. Segoe
Mansaku Fuwa	...	Matsutaro Shoriki
Yi Huang	...	Wu Qingying
Takayuki Inoue	...	Shusai Honinbo
Ayumi Ito	...	Kazuko Nakahara
Yoichiro Ito	...	Kaoru Iwamoto
Xuejian Li	...	Li Yutang
Keiko Matsuzaka	...	Fumiko Kita
Kaho Minami	...	Jikou Son
Takashi Nishina	...	Minoru Kitani
Hironobu Nomura	...	Yasunari Kawabata
Nao Omori	...	Utaro Hashimoto
Chiharu Uchiyama	...	Mrs. Kitani
Bai Qing Xin	...	Wu Yan
Masakane Yonekura	...	Sonoike Kinmochi

Also Known As:

The Go Master (International: English title)

Runtime:

USA:104 min

Country:

Japan | China

Language:

Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Hong Kong:IIA | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Beijing, China

Company:

Century Hero Film Investment Company

The life of Go master Wu Qingyan

The life of Go master Wu Qingyan who came to Japan from China in the 1930's (?) to train at a Go academy. The narrative spans the time from those early beginnings, through the invasion of China by Japan, Japan's defeat to the US, the difficult post-war years, and ending with Wu suffering an accident that terminated his career playing in Go competitions. If those tumultuous times were not enough, Wu had to cope with a pernicious case of TB.

You don't need to know the rules of Go, but even to a neophyte player, the moves and board positions depicted throughout look real. Contrast this to the brain-dead depiction of chess playing you see in many movies. Credit goes to a Dan-5 (Go player's rating) consultant.

Whether you understand the game or not, you marvel first at the utter simplicity of the empty board, the curved black and white stones, the satisfying sound they make when smacked into position, and then at the complex patterns of black and white covering the board during the end game. To that aesthetic add the great decorum and unhurried ceremony of the games between grandmasters. It fits perfectly with the narrative, acting, and camera work: formal and beautiful.

An element of the story escaped me at first: the nature of Wu's faith. I must have missed something early in the film, but near the end it is made clear that the religious sect he belongs to is Jiko.

The film is dedicated to master Wu and his wife (Kasuko?). The opening scene is shot in Odawara (?) in 2004, presumably showing the real Wu.