Roxie Theater: Suzhou River

Taking its name from the polluted river that flows through Shanghai, director Lou’s hometown, the brooding Suzhou River uses the singular first-person perspective of its unseen videographer-narrator to explore the grubby underbelly of the city, observing the story of an unsuspecting motorcycle courier who finds himself snared in a kidnapping plot and murder rap. A seductive, intricately structured stylistic coup from the Sixth Generation filmmaker, drawing on influences from film noir to Vertigo (1958) while developing its own idiosyncratic and haunting visual vocabulary.

“It’s hard not to be swept up by the strong current of Suzhou River: a seductive and atmospheric conundrum that works pleasingly as an exercise in storytelling.”– Sight and Sound

Co-presented by Bay Area Chinese Culture Salon