Il mistero scorre sul fiume

"Ma Zhe" (Zhu Yilong) engenders an almost adulatory degree of support from his team as he leads them on an investigation following the discovery of the body of the goose-rearing "Granny Four" on a remote riverside. Suspicion quickly falls on her adopted friend known simply as the "madman", but the detective is not so convinced that things are that straightforward. His ensuing task isn't helped by pressure from his ping-pong playing boss to conclude quickly and by the fact that he and his wife are expecting a baby - and that procedure is not going to be as simple as they might like. With the rain pretty much relentless throughout, he encounters some quirky local characters who seem to muddy the waters rather than offer him clarity. Clarity? Well that's an element to this story that is a bit too sparing at times. "Ma Zhe" finds his troubles gradually getting the better of him - yes, there are more bodies - and soon his own grasp on reality becomes distinctly compromised. Can he keep it together long enough to solve the crime? The film starts with the usual affirmation of the communist values of team play before entering the realms of predictable cop drama tempered with a bit of undercooked psycho-babble that Zhu Yilong tries to hard hold together. By the denouement, though, I felt way too much of the plot was contrived to try to tap into the psyche - of him and us - and it didn't really work. That said, he does well here and we do get quite a tense sense of his gradually becoming overwhelmed by the scenarios that test his usually linear style of working, thinking and living. Sadly, aside from "Ma Zhe", the characters are barely developed and director Wei Shujun seems more interested in focussing on an admittedly gritty and authentic looking peek at 1990s rural China, whilst rather abandoning the detail and characterisation of story to the sidelines as the dream sequences blur more and more the line between reality and fantasy. It does move along well enough, but I found it a bit of a meringue of a film - not much when you get into it.

Really and Excellent Film Worth Watching. Fantastic in every level, especially cinematography and acting. The portrayal of a rural town in 90's China is AMAZING. I lived during those years and the realism is mesmerizing. The attention to detail is out of this world. Even the yellow lamps, which were so common at the time, the thermos, the black leather suits, gooses roaming around the streets, the haircuts, everything is just PERFECT. Honestly, I have come to IMDB to check if the movie was really made in the 1990's or when.. just to make sure. I felt transported to a time in my life, a time that meant so much to me, that taught me and made me who I am. Wonderful Cinematography indeed. Acting was also PERFECT, the way you see those characters, their interactions, their dialogues... that was the way how men and women where! How could i forget? The realism in acting is off the chart. The story is also great, although for me, the brilliant, flawless cinematography and superb acting skills from all the actors involved is what makes me admire and appreciate "Only the River Flows." In fact, its a movie that i'd want to watch again, as it is still being show at SM City Cinema. In conclusion, I enjoyed and liked this filming effort 100%, and I would like to recommend it to you. I don't think you'd get disappointed, unless you were expecting a police movie filled with shootings and fights. This is none of that. There is police work, but its mostly from the psychological point of view and how china's society of the time could be at times hard to handle. We have to remember that those were years of huge transformations. It was right before china's big Deng Xioaping opening. Things were still pretty much centralized and face and obedience were paramount in every way of society. This movie is really a perfect portrayal of how china was during those years. Trust me, I lived them. It is how it was. But, even though for young generations it might seem nuts, the truth is it was not. It was awesome, I loved my live in the 90's China. My years were in rural Changsha, in Hunan province. So similar. Even the river as big part of the town is just exactly how it was. I loved those years, always will, and this movie is just WONDERFUL! (my humble opinion)

The movie is actually based on a novel by Yu Hua... The plots and setting of this movie makes audience unable to predict the end... The absurdity will make looking forward to the end of the movie... It's a noir movie... Mind blowing and realism... I believe it took years before Wei Shujun could adapt this to a movie... My friend that attended the screening at Cannes told me how absurd it was and I should see it so... Seeing this, it is above my expectations because I actually don't really like Chinese movies, I base on Korean but seeing this, I look forward to see more of this nature of movies.. Nice Performance from Yilong Zhu and Maoyan Chloe.. it's actually worth given it a try👍

Only the River Flows followed police investigator Ma Zhe (Zhu, Yilong Yilong Zhu), in the 90s China, trying to solve a murder case, with an "obvious" yet not so convincing suspect, the victim's adopted son, a man with mental illness. The movie developed into a psychological journey that was deeply intense and hard to resist. Intermingled with Ma Zhe's own life struggles, the psychological journey was painted with layers of unbelievable hues and shades, in contrast to the movie's desaturated color theme and tone. Are you saying it takes a crazy man to get a crazy man, literally?

As a neo-film nior, the movie shared many aspects of this genre. It also has absurdism and realism contrasting and complementing each other, just like the seemingly muted everyday life in the 90s which was actually during the turmoil of some of the biggest changes of China.

Bravo to Wei, Shujun Wei Shujun's cinema work, to the accuracy of a small town in 90s China, and to Zhu, Yilong Yilong Zhu's vivid portraying of a middle aged policeman dealing with madness from every aspects of his life.

In my humble opinion, a very special movie and a must-see.

Lens: 16mm film movies are really not easy It has a very cinematic texture, composition, colors, perfect camera language, and metaphorical expression art, which perfectly fits this somewhat bizarre and absurd story. There are no unnecessary narrative techniques at all. Excellent artistry, the atmosphere brought by the screen is excellent!

Music: This movie doesn't have a lot of music, but it's all perfectly chosen. And most importantly, when you finish watching the music in the movie and hear it again, a very strange feeling arises, as if the story of Ma Zhe and his is floating in your mind again, bringing you back to the story of the movie like a movie. Many of the things conveyed by the camera seem to be experienced in an instant.