Yinan Diao’s follow-up to his 2003 directorial debut Uniform is an intricate tale of court bailiff Wu Hongyan’s (a haunting Dan Liu) lonely existence that exposes the fragility of the human condition when confronted with overwhelming feelings of isolation, desperation and crucially guilt. Diao’s chillingly heartfelt contemplation on the inherent human desire for companionship, set in the bleak industrial wasteland of western China, is an atmospheric and sometimes pessimistic affair, but is one that provides a fascinating insight into the realities of justice, modernization and love in 21st century China.
crash/burn 