Rejected at Cannes in favour of a chinese-gay-auteur stuff, City of Life and Death was finally introduced to a western audience last week at the TIFF. One of the best chinese film of ’09 provoked some strong reactions, for example:
“A movie fan who broke into tears several times” told that “It was brutal, powerful and heartbreaking. It was hard to watch. I knew about the incident but the way the movie portrays here shows how Japanese army just kept breaking down”
As for director Lu Chuan, we learn he’s been criticized for showing the moral conflict of a Japanese soldier. But he said:
I think the Chinese movies that were previously introduced to the world have been unfortunately stereotyped as martial arts and Kung Fu only. They portray the Chinese people in a very narrow and shallow way
Then he added:
What I want to show in this movie is the defiance, persistence and bravery the Chinese people had demonstrated during the Nanjing Massacre. That may well explain to the Western world as to why China is becoming an economically strong country today
Lu Chuan admitted he’d love to show the film in Japan:
It is my dream but it is very difficult. I have an excellent team and a lot of Japanese friends are also helping to bring this movie to Japan. My dream is that some day in the future this movie can be released in public (in Japan). I think we’re getting closer and closer.
So far, City of Life and Death has only found a North American distributor.
Via Xinhua
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Hm, by the director of Kekexili.
Must see this.
Hoping for an unbiased approach of this tragic event.
“Rejected at Cannes in favour of a chinese-gay-auteur stuff”
Léger mouvement de recul, je l’avoue, en lisant ce bout de phrase. Sans vouloir le moins du monde vous faire un procès d’intention, le terme “stuff” ne peut-il paraître péjoratif et dénigrant, et dès lors un peu déplacé, s’agissant en particulier de l’oeuvre cannoise dont question en, en général, du style “gay-auteur” – chinois ou d’autres pays?
GREAT! Here’s an interview of Lu Chuan about the controversy;
This is an excellent movie. Arguably one of the best Chinese films I’ve seen to date. More films like this need to be made to show the world what happened.