Director

Ye Lou

China | 2019 | 126 min | Mandarin, English, Japanese, French with subtitles in English and Arabic

• Producer
• Production Company Qianyi Times, Ying Films, Bai An Film, Tianyi
• Screenplay Yingli Ma
• Cinematography Zeng Jian
• Editing Lou Ye, Feng Shan Yu Lin
• Sound Fu Kang
• Cast Gong Li, Mark Chao, Joe Odagiri, Pascal Greggory, Tom Wlaschiha 
• Contacts

  Teleview International

  ziadc@teleview-int.tv

About the Film

At once a spy thriller, a black-and-white mood period piece about pre-Pearl Harbor Shanghai, and a play-within-a-film arthouse ode to Alfred Hitchcock, Lou Ye’s latest film seems to want to offer something for everyone. Starring the beguiling Gong Li and a slew of assorted characters, played by Chinese and international actors, the film’s noir tone well accompanies the epic story of a group of spies and movie stars who possess, unbeknownst to them, the power to stop the Japanese attack on American ships in Hawaii, marking the turning point that brought the US into WWII.

Lou’s latest story is brought to life by some stunning production design, beautiful acting and a combination of melodrama mixed with action. One must point out that the events in the movie take place in a Shanghai that at the time was called a “solitary island” where forces at play included the French and the British, after the Chinese-controlled areas fell as a result of the Battle of Shanghai in 1937 with Japan. This information provides the audience with an important clue to understand the stories told, as well as the setting and mood of the film. But ultimately, Saturday Fiction will intrigue and entertain thanks to Lou’s unique voice and dynamic camera work.

E. Nina Rothe