She, a Chinese (2009)

This is the story of Mei, a young woman on a trip from East to West after her escape from her provincial Chinese village. Beginning in Chongqing and a disastrous factory job, Mei soon heads... See full summary »

Director:

Xiaolu Guo

Writer:

Xiaolu Guo

Stars:

Lu Huang, Wei Yi Bo, Geoffrey Hutchings

2 wins.

Cast

Credited cast:
Lu Huang	...	Li Mei
Wei Yi Bo	...	'Spikey'
Geoffrey Hutchings	...	Geoffrey Hunt
Chris Ryman	...	Rachid
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hsinyi Liu	...	London Tour Guide
James Parry	...	Medical student

Storyline

This is the story of Mei, a young woman on a trip from East to West after her escape from her provincial Chinese village. Beginning in Chongqing and a disastrous factory job, Mei soon heads out for London and a marriage to an older man where her entrapment begins anew.

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Plot Keywords:

marriage | punctuation in title | factory worker | travel

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site [fr]

Country:

UK France Germany

Language:

Mandarin English

Release Date:

4 February 2010 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Chinka

Filming Locations:

China

Company Credits

Production Co:

UK Film Council, Warp X, Film4

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min 98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

This movie was quite interesting...

Director Xiaolu Guo have managed to put together a rather interesting movie here with "She, A Chinese", as it tells a very deep and compelling story.

The story told in "She, A Chinese" is about Li Mei who lives in a small rural village in China, dreaming of a better life. However, in her desire to get there she runs into some less than savory characters, and when she finally do get to Chongqing, she ends up with equally less than savory characters as she takes up work in the "Love Salon" - a salon that does more than just cut hair. And her fortune changes as she runs into a thug with a good amount of money. A spur of the moment decision takes Li Mei to London where she ends up marrying an older British man, but falling in love with an Indian immigrant.

"She, A Chinese" is a movie about a girl's journey from dreams to reality, but also a journey from girlhood into adulthood. But it is also a movie about the actual journey itself, from the small Chinese village in the East to the bustling metropolis London in the West. It is a story that is nicely told and really brought to life quite well on the screen.

The people cast for the various roles were doing great jobs, and of course the lead role of Li Mei (played by Lu Huang) was the center of the movie and she really carried the movie quite well.

It should be said that "She, A Chinese" might be somewhat of an acquired taste. If you are familiar with Asian cinema, this movie will deviate somewhat from the mainstream movies that comes out of Asia. But it is in no way in a negative way, and "She, A Chinese" is really a good movie with good entertainment value. And it paints a vivid portrait of the differences between East and West and the clash of cultures.

The movie is not fast-paced, so if you don't enjoy movies that takes it times to get you from A to B, then "She, A Chinese" is not the movie for you. However, if you enjoy a very real and down to Earth drama, then "She, A Chinese" is perhaps right up your alley.

I enjoy Asian cinema quite a lot and came across the movie by sheer luck as I was browsing movies on Amazon. It is a good addition to my DVD collection and I was impressed with the impact the story left on me. So, in my opinion, "She, A Chinese" is definitely worth a watch.