Raw and intimate, Lou’s latest is a meta-filmic, time-travelling chronicle back to the COVID-19 pandemic as he reflects on the angst and helplessness of not being able to complete a film, yet it is also surprisingly an emotional work of gratitude.
Lou Ye’s compelling if controversial tale of politics and sex is built upon the exceptional performance by Hao Lei, who plays a disoriented university student torn between lust and love as the political consciousness of Chinese youths takes root.
While the storytelling sometimes struggles to convince, the technical prowess of Lou Ye’s team in capturing the extraordinary performances and putting together one mesmerizing and sensual image after another is deserving of praise.
Clandestine affairs and the desire for sexual connection mark Lou Ye’s naturalistic, if at times, meandering take on the taboos of the conservative Chinese society.
Effortlessly mounted and conceptually strong, Lou Ye’s latest starring Gong Li is a dreamlike, meta-layered tale of espionage as the Allies attempt to one-up the Japanese in WWII Shanghai.
Lou Ye’s breakthrough is a risqué-lite affair, shot in a gritty, disjointed style that pays homage to Hitchcock’s Vertigo.
Eternality Tan 