Tang shan da di zhen (2010)

Tang shan da di zhen is a movie starring Daoming Chen, Chen Li, and Yi Lu. The epic story of a family separated as a result of the Great Tangshan Earthquake of 1976.

Director:

Xiaogang Feng

Writers:

Wu Si (screenplay), Ling Zhang (novel)

Stars:

Daoming Chen, Chen Li, Yi Lu

20 wins & 26 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Fan Xu	...	Li Yuanni
Jingchu Zhang	...	Fang Deng / Wang Deng
Chen Li	...	Fang Da
Zifeng Zhang	...	Young Fang Deng (as Zi-feng Zhang)
Jiajun Zhang	...	Young Fang Da
Yi Lu	...	Yang Zhi
Guoqiang Zhang	...	Fang Daqiang
Ziwen Wang	...	Xiao He
Lixin Yang	...	Lao Niu
Zhong Lü	...	Grandmother
Mei Yong	...	Aunt
Lili Liu	...	Sichuan Mother (as Li-Li Liu)
Daoming Chen	...	Wang Deqing (Deng's Foster Father)
Jin Chen	...	Dong Guilan (Deng's Foster Mother)
Baowen Zhang	...	Wang Zhiguo's Wife

Storyline

In Tangshan, the truck driver Da Qiang, his wife Yuan Ni and their twins Fang Da, their son, and Fang Deng, their daughter, are a happy simple family. On 27 July 1976, a devastating earthquake destroys Tangshan, and Da Qiang dies while trying to rescue his children from their apartment. When a collapsed beam traps Fang Da and Fang Deng, Yuan Ni is forced to decide between saving her son or daughter and she chooses Fang Da. However, her daughter Fang Deng overhears her mother's choice and miraculously survives. She is rescued by a soldier and adopted by Mr. Wang and his wife with the name Wang Deng. Thirty-two years later, after an earthquake in China, Wang Deng, now married to a Canadian lawyer and living in Vancouver with her daughter, travels to China and voluntarily joins the rescue team. By chance she meets Fang Da and she learns the drama of Yuan Ni through all those years. The family is finally reunited at Yuan Ni's home, where bitterness is exposed and resolved.

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Plot Keywords:

earthquake | china | tangshan earthquake | man versus nature | disaster relief | 

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Taglines:

23 seconds, 32 years.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [China] Official site [Hong Kong]

Country:

China

Language:

Mandarin

Release Date:

22 July 2010 (China)

Also Known As:

Aftershock

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$62,962

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$100,292,829

Company Credits

Production Co:

Tangshan City Government, China Film Group, Huayi Brothers Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

135 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Sonics-DDP (IMAX version)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In consideration of the Tohoku earthquake in March 2011, the Japanese distributor canceled the planned release of the film later that month. The film which depicted the 1976 Tangshan earthquake was eventually released in the country in March 2015 in dozens of theaters, as opposed to hundreds it was planned for 4 years earlier.

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Goofs

Chinese New Years Holiday celebration 1997 seen on the TV set. The first flat screen CRT television was brought to the mass market by Panasonic in November of 1997. Chinese New Year 1997 would mean February of 1997. It is also not of a Pansonic brand TV.

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Quotes

Dong Guilan: [displeased, very quietly] What a disgrace.
Wang Deqing: Are you talking about me? What have I done?
Dong Guilan: The child is already grown up. Look at what you're wearing.
Wang Deqing: [glances at his casual T-shirt and shorts] Huh, I'm at home. Should I be dressed like a king? Can't I even enter my own child's room?

User Reviews

I don't understand a word of Chinese, but this is definitely the best movie i have seen in YEARS!

"god! you BASTARD!" wow... that scene took my breath away. i actually had to snap out of the movie for a second and make myself realize that i'm watching a movie, and its not real! (atleast not for me. but to imagine people actually go through such emotions in times like this makes you feel nauseous.) what an amazing movie! i only saw the 1st hour of it for time restraints... but i cannot wait to finish it. nothing i've seen in recent years compares to this movie. i don't know a word of Chinese, but the acting is just superb. i was reluctant to watch a movie in a language i don't understand, especially reading reviews about it being a "heart-felt" and "touching" movie; i'm so glad i didn't skip this one. brilliant!brilliant! brilliant!