Springtime in a Small Town

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  • Opened September 4, 2002 
  • 1 hr 56 min
  • PG | Some Thematic Elements

  • In 1940s China, small-town landowner Liyan (Wu Jun) leads a sad existence; his property is in ruins, his health isn't much better, his marriage to wife Yuwen (Hu Jingfan) is almost loveless and the presence of his boisterous teen sister Xiu (Lu Sisi) only makes things worse. Then Zhang (Xin Baiqing), a doctor who is an ex-lover of Yuwen's and a boyhood chum of Liyan's, arrives to treat the ailing man. He brings passion back into the household, but also extreme tension. Full synopsis

  • Cast: Hu Jingfan, Wu Jun, Xin Baiqing, Ye Xiaokeng, Lu Sisi
  • Director: Tian Zhuangzhuang
  • Genres: Drama, Romance

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Critic Reviews

100
Los Angeles Times
| Manohla Dargis

For Tian, who was banned from directing by Chinese authorities for a decade, it marks a triumphant return; for those who have loved the filmmaker's work in the past, few resurrections have seemed as welcome. Read full review

100
Village Voice
| J. Hoberman

Tian's movie seems to be among the finest expressions of the Chinese new wave. Read full review

90
L.A. Weekly
| Scott Foundas

Simply put, it represents the work of a filmmaker so exhilaratingly in command of his craft that he can, among other things, turn a single image of two people standing next to each other -- fully clothed, their bodies not quite touching -- into one of the most sublimely erotic moments we have ever beheld on the screen. Read full review

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