Posts Tagged ‘variety’

Three New Chinese Indie Docs Reviewed in Variety and Twitch

Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

By Kevin B. Lee

"Are We Really So Far from the Madhouse?"

Covering the Vancouver International Film Festival for Variety, Robert Koehler has been filing rave reviews of some new Chinese independent documentaries he’s seen at the festival’s Dragons and Tigers lineup. We are excited to see his praise for Bachelor Mountain, the new film by Yu Guangyi (whose Timber Gang is distributed by dGenerate) and Are We Really So Far from the Madhouse, the latest by Li Hongqi (whose Winter Vacation is available through dGF).

Coincidentally, the same three documentaries are also reviewed enthusiastically by Kathie Smith, who covered VIFF for the website Twitch.

Click through to read excerpts from Koehler’s and Smith’s reviews – click on their names to access the full text of Koehler’s reviews on Variety (registration required) and Smith’s on Twitch. Also read the program notes on all Chinese language films at VIFF by programmer Shelly Kraicer.

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“Stunning:” Crime and Punishment Reviewed by Variety

Tuesday, January 11th, 2011

This week on dGenerate we will be featuring articles related to Zhao Liang’s acclaimed documentary Crime and Punishment to coincide with the screening of his films at Anthology Film Archives in New York City. Click here for more information on the screenings.

Crime and Punishment (dir. Zhao Liang)

This rave by Robert Koehler in Variety was one of the key reviews that drove us to pursue Crime and Punishment and eventually distribute it as part of the dGenerate catalog. Reading it, you can see why. Better yet, see the film at Anthology Film Archives during its run!

Here are some choice excerpts. The full review can be accessed at Variety.

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By Robert Koehler

In his stunning “Crime and Punishment,” documentary filmmaker Zhao Liang upturns the common perception that Chinese media and artists have little or no access to corridors of the military and law enforcement. At the same time, Zhao reveals a community hugging the border with North Korea where lawbreaking and extreme poverty go hand-in-hand. Rigorously observational and sometimes quite amusing when it isn’t shocking, pic further cements China’s position as a doc powerhouse, and should spark tube and cable sales in most major markets.

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“Fascinating, beautifully crafted” 1428 Reviewed in Variety

Monday, April 5th, 2010

1428 (dir. Du Haibin)

Du Haibin‘s documentary 1428 received an enthusiastic review in Variety.  Reviewer Ronnie Scheib writes:

The title of Du Haibin’s striking documentary refers to the exact time (14:28) on May 12, 2008, when a massive 8.0 earthquake rocked China’s Sichuan province. Pic proceeds with virtually no exposition, except for the words supplied by survivors as they scramble to build a makeshift existence on the ruins. Visiting a devastated village 10 days and then 210 days after the quake, Du depicts, with immediacy and casual artistry, a wide range of human reactions to the natural and political aftershocks. Fascinating, beautifully crafted Venice prizewinner fully warrants an arthouse run.

Full review can be accessed at Variety.

More details about the film here.

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