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Mountains May Depart
山河故人
2015 127 min China, France, Japan 18+
★7.4
Drama, History, Romance, Science Fiction
Director: Jia Zhang-ke
Trailers
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Description
The life of Tao, and those close to her, is explored in three different time periods: 1999, 2014, and 2025.
US Gross:
$82,913
Starring
Tao Zhao
Actor
Yi Zhang
Actor
Liang Jingdong
Actor
Awards
San Sebastián International Film Festival 2015
— Audience Award – Best European Film
Asian Film Academy 2016
— Best Screenplay
Asian Film Academy 2016
— Best Actress
Cannes Film Festival 2015
— Palme d'Or
Asian Film Academy 2016
— Best Picture
Asian Film Academy 2016
— Best Screenplay
Key opinion
Jia Zhangke’s ambitious triptych masterfully captures the seismic shifts in Chinese society and personal identity across three decades. While critics admire the film's visual authenticity and poignant thematic depth, some viewers find the fragmented narrative structure and pacing of the later acts to be less cohesive than the beginning.
| Production | The production design uses meticulous costumes, settings, and technology to distinguish the three eras with high historical authenticity. | |
| Theme | The narrative effectively grounds complex socio-economic shifts in China within the intimate, tragic choices of a single family. | |
| Direction | The direction uses precise visual motifs and musical cues, like the recurring use of 'Go West,' to powerfully evoke nostalgia and time's passage. | |
| Screenplay | The three-act structure is divisive; while some praise the expansive montage as a way to map entire lives, others feel the final act becomes fragmented and underdeveloped. | |
| Pacing | The deliberate, slow-burn pacing is appreciated by those seeking a contemplative drama, but is seen as aimless or exhausting by others. |