The other two contenders have not been released in their homeland yet, but Massage is a well-known story adapted from Bi Feiyu's widely acclaimed novel. Last year saw the birth of both the stage play and the television drama series, and Lou Ye's film treatment could not possibly embed any narrative spoilers. However, those who love the story, about a bunch of blind people who make a living from the massage business, may compare the different artistic approaches and conclude which one successfully comes out of the shadow of the literary original.
Black Coal, Thin Ice is set against the wintry landscape of Northeast China where the desolate scenery may reflect the mental state of the main characters. Director Diao Yinan loves film noir, but his style of portraying murder and misery is uniquely his own, where the cop, the perpetrator and the hapless bystander are not suave or sophisticated enough to spew bon mots. "I love black because it gives a sense of discontinuity, and it blends social realism with surrealistic fantasy; I love to subvert conventions," Diao explains.
More Chinese-language films are competing in the Panorama section: Dante Lam's supernatural thriller That Demon Within, Fruit Chan's adaptation of an online novel The Midnight After, Tsai Ming-liang's new segment of his experimental Walker series titled Journey to the West, The Rice Bomber by Cho Li, Ice Poison by Midi Z and Zhou Hao's auspicious debut The Night. This heavily Asian program is designed to promote art-house cinema with a clear auteur inclination.
Cao Baoping's Einstein and Einstein, about a teenage girl and her dog, is among the First Generation sidebar. The Movable Feast is picked for the Culinary Cinema program.
Besides those in competition, several Chinese-language films are on sale at the European Film Market, which runs alongside Berlinale. Most notable is The Golden Era, Ann Hui's upcoming biopic on female writer Xiao Hong. The pairing of Hui and Tang Wei is keeping many cinephiles in blissful prayer for something great.
Back to the main competition, Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu Wai, a favorite with auteur filmmakers, is sitting on the judging panel, further arousing interest in China. As many as 73 percent polled on Sina.com were hopeful that Chinese-language films may bring home some kind of trophy.
中國電影缺席歐洲三大電影節(jié)之后,在第64屆柏林國際電影節(jié)上強(qiáng)勢回歸。今年的柏林電影節(jié)將于2月6日至16日舉行。本屆電影節(jié)主競賽單元共有23部電影,其中3部是中國電影。歷時四年通過審查的《無人區(qū)》,由寧浩執(zhí)導(dǎo),反映了人性的黑暗。這部電影于2013年12月3日在中國上映,是一部叫座的商業(yè)大片,票房高達(dá)2.6億元。
其它兩部提名電影還沒有在中國上映。《推拿》改編自畢飛宇的著名小說。去年同名舞臺劇和電視劇都已上映,所以婁燁的電影不進(jìn)行任何的劇透。小說講述的是一群盲人從事推拿以謀求生存的故事,所以,那些喜愛這個故事的人們免不了要將不同的藝術(shù)版本進(jìn)行比較,看看哪一個成功的擺脫了原著的束縛。
《白日焰火》在中國東北取景,荒涼的景色可以反映出主演的心理狀態(tài)。導(dǎo)演刁亦男喜愛黑色電影,但是他描述謀殺與神秘的風(fēng)格卻是獨(dú)一無二的。警察、罪犯以及倒霉的旁觀者還沒有柔和或復(fù)雜到蹦出智慧警句。“我喜歡黑色電影,因?yàn)樗o人一種間斷感,并將社會現(xiàn)實(shí)與超現(xiàn)實(shí)主義幻想融合在一起。我喜歡顛覆傳統(tǒng)。”刁亦男說。
全景單元更有多部華語電影:林超賢導(dǎo)演的超自然驚悚片《魔警》,陳果改編自網(wǎng)絡(luò)小說的《那夜凌晨,我坐上了旺角開往大埔的紅VAN》,以及蔡明亮導(dǎo)演的新作《西游》,卓立導(dǎo)演的《白米炸彈客》,趙德胤導(dǎo)演的《冰毒》,周豪的處女作《夜》。這次的亞洲重磅計(jì)劃意在推廣導(dǎo)演們的藝術(shù)電影。
曹保平導(dǎo)演的《狗十三》入圍新生代單元競賽,講述的是一個小姑娘和她的狗狗的故事。電影《總鋪師》入圍美食單元競賽。
除了入圍電影,還有多部華語電影意在開拓歐洲電影市場,在柏林電影節(jié)期間上映。最值得一提的是許鞍華導(dǎo)演的即將上映的傳記電影《黃金時代》,講述的是女作家蕭紅的故事。眾多影迷期待湯唯的精彩演出。
讓我們再回到主競賽區(qū),香港演員梁朝偉是導(dǎo)演制片人們最喜歡的演員,本次電影節(jié)將坐鎮(zhèn)評審席,這將會激起歐洲對中國的更大興趣。新浪網(wǎng)進(jìn)行的調(diào)查顯示,高達(dá)73%的網(wǎng)民希望華語電影在本屆電影節(jié)上可以多拿幾個獎杯。