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Bookmark this pageThe Orphan of Anyang (2001)
Director: Wang Chao
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
The dirt-town setting and non-pro cast mean that Wang Chao's debut stands somewhat in the shadow of Xiao Wu, a beacon for an entire generation of underground directors in China. Middle-aged, unmarried and now unemployed, Yu Dagang comes upon an abandoned baby with a note from its mother promising a stipend to anyone willing to raise it. The mother turns out to be ex-nightclub hostess Yanli; they meet and eventually start living together, he repairing bicycles and she working as a hooker. But then another prospective parent shows up: gang-boss Side (probably the biological father), terminally ill and looking for an heir. It all ends badly, but Wang sweetens the pill with a closing wish-fulfilment fantasy. The numerous sequence-shots evidence a good cinematic eye: two extended fixed-angle shots of Yanli in a noodle shop show exactly how less can yield more.Author: TR
Cast & crew
Director: Wang Chao
Producer: Fang Li
Cast: Zhu Jie, Sun Guilin, Yue Senyi, Liu Tianhao, Miao Fuwen full cast
Duration: 84 mins
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