Suzhou River (film)

For the river in Shanghai, see Suzhou Creek.
Suzhou River
Simplified Chinese苏州河
Traditional Chinese蘇州河
Hanyu PinyinSūzhōu hé
Directed byLou Ye
Written byLou Ye
Produced byPhilippe Bober
Nai An
StarringZhou Xun
Jia Hongsheng
CinematographyWang Yu
Edited byKarl Riedl
Music byJörg Lemberg
Release dates
  • January 29, 2000 (2000-01-29) (Rotterdam)
  • September 7, 2000 (2000-09-07) (Hong Kong)
Running time
83 minutes
CountryChina
LanguageMandarin
Box office$17,500

Suzhou River (Chinese: 苏州河; pinyin: Sūzhōu Hé) is a 2000 Chinese romance film written and directed by Lou Ye, a tragic love story set in contemporary Shanghai. The film, though stylistically distinct, is typical of "Sixth Generation" Chinese filmmakers in its subject matter of contemporary China's gritty urban experience.[1] Co-produced by the German Essential Films and China's Dream Factory,[2] the film stars Zhou Xun in a dual role as two different women and Jia Hongsheng as a man obsessed with finding a woman from his past.

Ye's second film, Suzhou River takes as its background the chaotically built-up riverside architecture of factory buildings and abandoned warehouses along the Suzhou River, rather than the glitzy new face of Shanghai.

Though well-received abroad, Suzhou River was not screened in its native China, as Ye was banned from filmmaking for two years after screening at the International Film Festival Rotterdam without permission from Chinese authorities.[3] It is now authorized in China.[4]

  1. ^ Smith, Christopher J. (2007). "Culture and Cultural Change" in China's Geography: Globalization and the Dynamics of Political, Economic, and Social Change. Edited by Gregory Veeck, et al. Rowman & Littlefield, p. 164. ISBN 0-7425-5402-3. Google Book Search. Retrieved 2008-09-15
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Rooney was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Banned in China, Lou Ye to make film on Israel-Palestinian conflict". The Guardian. 2007-03-28. Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  4. ^ "《苏州河》资料—中国—电影—优酷网，视频高清在线观看—又名：《Suzhou River》".