Les Feux sauvages

The photography was superbe, grandiose or intimate, always striking. OTOH, I (and my date) was unable to follow the story at all. Perhp[as if I knew more about Chinese geography and social customs it would have made more sense, but as it was it left me with nothing more than a huge dark question mark covering over any thought I might have had about the film, a physical rejection of the sound level of ports of it, but also with a trove of images - both nature, man-made, and of haunting faces that will not soon fade away. The one thing that provided some unity came to me afterward when I thought about the title and realized that the movement of the film is analogous to the tide -- washing out to sea bringing all kinds of things from elegant boats to detritus with it, then flowing back upstream.

Have you ever bought an album by a band and find that, rather than new material, it's some old B-sides, remixes and a couple of new songs for added value? Of course you have, if you're over thirty-five, that is. Jia Zhang-ke's "Caught by the Tides" is in many ways just that. But in doing so, it does make a statement about his career, and indeed the changing face of the world around him.

Qiao Qiao (Zhao Tao) shares a romance with Guao Bin (Zhubin Li), but he moves on, with Qiao Qiao trailing in his wake. Over the years, and across the country, she follows him. But on reaching her destination, maybe what she's been wanting isn't for her.

But in reality, the plot is irrelevant, as much of this has already been written and filmed over the years; it has now just been repurposed. Outtakes from the likes of "Unknown Pleasures" (2002), "Still Life" (2006) and "Mountains May Depart" (2015), if I remember correctly. This allows to realistically show the two leads over time, and their unequal ageing. Scenes are, therefore, different, but very familiar, in what serves as something of a retrospective for Jia's work, in a more direct and better-executed way than Takeshi Kitano attempted with "Takeshis'" (2005).

The problem with creating a film in this way is that while it's perfectly serviceable as a narrative film, shoehorning in what you already have makes this feel a little awkward in terms of flow. It feels more a series of vignettes than a well-constructed work. Having seen many of the films the outtakes are from serves to remind you of the original scenario, and so doesn't quite feel like a single story, but various stories stuck together.

But there are some nice coincidences that materialise and allow Jia's message to come across. Text messaging on an old Nokia become TikTok videos on the latest smart phone. Jia is very tongue-in-cheek with his look at technology. TikTok stardom serves more for cheap advertising than actual fame and fortune; and service robots can be easily confused with simple questioning. Technology has played an interesting role in shaping the nature of human relationships, especially over the past twenty years.

Knowing Jia's work, you will instantly recognise what is going on here. But if coming to his work fresh, this may seem like a slightly strange film that doesn't quite tie together nicely enough. Some scenes don't seem to really fit; more added in as they were available.

So, this may require some background work for the uninitiated, and is one more for long-term fans. Though they might feel they are watching "Still Life" again. Has life moved on in the past eighteen years?

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A meditation on love and passing time; a woman searches for her lost lover within the rubble of a deconstructed city as well as her own shattered memory, the Three Gorges Dam consumes cities whole just as time swallows people, women sing and dance in joy and hurt, and dreams surface and submerge again. Lives are changing, and we often don't notice.

Utilizing primarily b-roll and outtakes from previous films, Zhang-ke weaves a cerebral and imaginative tale. While I wish the material was all new and put together with more of a cohesive story in mind, I can't deny that Zhang-ke has a magical and mesmerizing touch in all that he does, even in his wandering. Seen at the Toronto International Film Festival.

The most striking thing about this film is seeing the natural aging of the actors, but the collage of the different projects into a single film is rather shaky and risks turning off several people at the start of the film. Several bold choices from the directors, including the use of intertitles and what appear to be images taken from surveillance cameras. When we get to the end of the film, we can be moved and consider this project as a good film, especially with the evolution of the relationship between the two main characters, but the first part prevents us from being very generous for the rating of the work. Good use of music (it's more of a musical film than a dialogue film). Good soundtrack. Good finale.

Plot: Qiaoqiao and Bin, deeply in love, enjoy city life together through singing and dancing. Their happiness is cut short when Bin suddenly departs to seek opportunities elsewhere. Determined, Qiaoqiao sets out to find him.

Cannes film festival 2024 palme d'or nominee

A tranquil tale of loneliness,industralization through snippets of changing cities,depleted landscapes,strucures,songs,personal aspirations engraved deeply in the heart of China and it's people.

Jhangke juxtaposes scenes from his previous films to comply with the timelines covered in the film which fits in the narrative perfectly.