October 17-20
Audiences get to see big, international co-productions by such esteemed filmmakers as Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige, and Zhou Xiaowen, and recent years have also introduced the work of “underground” filmmakers such as Jia Zhang-ke. Yet rarely have we had the chance to see what might be called “popular Chinese cinema”—films still largely produced in the remnants of the old state-controlled studio system that will sometimes play to audiences of tens of millions without ever being distributed outside of China. “Eastern Promise: Popular Cinema from China” is an attempt to remedy this situation; included are eight films that have had considerable success with domestic Chinese audiences, films ranging in style from tender melodramas to sweeping epics. Of special importance is the spectacular The Founding of a Republic, a massive, often surprising historical re-creation made to commemorate the centenary of the founding of the Republic that stars every Chinese actor you’ve ever seen.