Jiang cheng xia ri (2006)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Chao Wang

Writer:

Chao Wang (writer)

Release Date:

27 September 2006 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A country schoolteacher reaching retirement comes to Wuhan in search of his only son. His dying wife has requested to see her boy one last time...

Awards:

1 win

Cast

He Huang	...	Dage
Yiqing Li	...	Policeman
Yuan Tian	...	Yanhong Li
Youcai Wu	...	Li Qiming

Also Known As:

Luxury Car (International: English title)
Voiture de luxe (France)

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

France | China

Language:

Mandarin

Color:

Color

Filming Locations:

Wuhan, Hubei, China

Company:

Rosem Films

Social drama in modern China

As his wife is dying from cancer, an old school teacher from the provinces journeys to Wuhan hoping to find the son they haven't seen for years. He stays with his daughter, unaware that she is a call-girl working in a karaoke club, but enlisting the help of a policeman approaching retirement, he soon becomes aware of the character of the big city, the dangers it poses and the compromises it forces from people.

Luxury Car gives a rounded perspective on the circumstances of people in present day China, presenting it as a well-placed drama without obvious political or social commentary, but it there if you want to look for it – in the changing values, in the striving for power and influence, in criminality, and of course in the dangerous dream of the lengths one will go to in order to own a luxury car. It even makes reference to the past through the father's background and his expulsion from the city during the Cultural Revolution.

Beautifully made, the dark tones and colour of the film all play a part in conveying the image of cheap superficial glamour, which – like the spray-painted stolen luxury car – hides the reality underneath.