Red Amnesia

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Wang Xiaoshuai, director of RED AMNESIA (selected at NYAFF 2015) talks on how cultural amnesia affects China today in everyday life. This haunting film portrays the struggles of an elderly widow who tries to care for her two sons through a generational divide. Add in elements of mystery and drama, Wang completes his "Cultural Revolution Trilogy" in dark but unforgettable fashion.

Red Amnesia premiered in Competition at Venice and won a Special Mention at the Munich International Film Festival. Wang Xiaoshuai's films have won the Jury Prize at Cannes and both the Grand Jury Prize and Silver Bear for Best Screenplay at Berlinale.

Deliberate affectation, Procrastination of the rhythm, confusing lens in deepening suspense, but also let a person confused. Maybe some people just like this kind of literary film that they can't understand. The logic fallacy of the whole film reaches its peak in identifying the photograph, and finally brings about the result of tragedy.

The film set a new record of the actor's age. There are at least 3 Aged actress: Zhong Lv is 75 years old, Ran-ran Li is 85 years old, Su Ying Huang is 96 years old. The three national actress quietly interpretation of what is called dedication.

The writers also broke through the past cultural revolution theme, who wrote the story from a new perspective on history. Not sensational, but still fully examine the influence of cruel history on a person's life. This effect may even continue for generations.It is a rare restraint of reflection in the way of a dramatic expression for the specific historical events.

The story also showed many details of current social reality, such as homosexuality, the shortage of resources in the aging society, etc.. This makes the film have a realistic style through the times.

The story started with a stubborn retired widow who insisted her involvement in her two sons' life. Before viewers find this line a prototype depicting, a second layer of story was laid, a series of mysterious anonymous calls, brick breaking-in and garbage dropping disrupted the peaceful life of the widow and his sons' family. Naturally, the investigation of the intruder leads to a third layer, going beyond now, unveiling another disturbing story 40 years ago during the Cultural Revolution. Till now, all three layers' of stories, one paving way for the other, lead to the revealing moment of the intruder. It is a striking ending, as well as heavy and long-lasting.

The movie attempts to not only present a multifaceted portrait of the reality of Chinese society but also probe into its historical roots. Hence it is a rare treasure among its peers.

The bookend of his Cultural Revolution trilogy, renowned Chinese filmmaker Wang Xiaoshuai's Red Amnesia surveys the life of recently-widowed Deng and the complex moral and ethical consequences of a long-past act of self-preservation. Combining elements of mystery, sociopolitical allegory, and observational drama, Red Amnesia weaves a diverse portrait of an entire generation through the story of one woman who chose to forget.

Despite its success on the festival circuit, Red Amnesia received less than 2% of total domestic theatrical screenings, evidencing the censorship of art house cinema in China.

Red Amnesia premiered in Competition at Venice and won a Special Mention at the Munich International Film Festival. Wang Xiaoshuai's films have won the Jury Prize at Cannes and both the Grand Jury Prize and Silver Bear for Best Screenplay at Berlinale.

Source: Filmatique.com