As the scene opens, men lounge on a stone wall. “Just a second.”, “Fetch my clothes then you can finish eating lunch, I need to rush home.”. They’re on a terrace overlooking the town. The camera pans through the street of the town. “Go on, three yuan.” Yangyang takes out her money. Time has no meaning in Kaili Blues. They keep driving the doctors looks off, they pass road signs, and then they slow down. She’s wearing a sleeveless blouse sandals and a yellow skirt. ... Kaili Blues … The layered, dreamlike plot follows Luo Hongwu (played by Huang Jue) as he returns to his hometown, looking into the past for clues about what happened to Wildcat (Lee Hong), a lost love he last saw more than a decade ago. amzn_assoc_region = "US"; We’re all coping here. It’s only a matter of time: before the time travel / ghost story / road movie “Kaili Blues” becomes the landmark Chinese film I see it as, before we await the next film by first time feature director & poet, former miner & wedding videographer Bi Gan, with the excitement reserved for the heavyweight names in Asian cinema. Wild men can’t tell the difference between a person’s back and a person’s front. The bridge ends by the market on the other side of the river. “I feel a bit strange,” says the stylist. It's such a fine thing you do. Kaili Blues_____ About"the"Director"! Then stands and retrieves her sewing kit. The roofs along the river are steep and lined with terracotta tiles. We know a few of those.”. She motions to a blue container on the seat. They arrive at the dock on the other side of the river, and she steps off the ferry. Following Governor Murphy’s announcement, we are thrilled to be able to welcome fans back through Prudential Center’s doors. One day, his wife got seriously ill. The city spans 51.76km from east to west, and 44.3km from north to south. But, if the mode is contemplative and the mood entropic, the visual information is rich and lively. amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; They drive past old stone walls along a row of low trees. He was broke. The Long Take: The Old Man’s Dark Light by Jonah Howell, The Long Take: 5 Poems by Jeff T. Johnson, Men Abuse Their Power & Then Explain It To Me, The Long Take: John Wayne Was a Transwoman, Long Takes: Spinning a Record in A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, Cameron Awkward-Rich + Diana Arterian’s To-Read Piles (January). The driver asks, “Where are you going?”. The band continues to play and the doctor walks upwards on a narrow stair through the center of the town. At times Snow modulates the sound and picture in random warpings. amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; When I was shooting Kaili Blues, they could see that I was doing something with a great deal of seriousness, but they felt that what I was doing had no value. Paterson (2016) by Jim Jarmusch and Kaili Blues (2015) by Bi Gan are films that come from vastly different cultures and auteurs that nevertheless share something vital and unusual: Each film contains poetry and is itself a poem. The protagonist of Kaili Blues, Chen Sheng, is a small-town medical practitioner and ex-con. The musicians are loading gear. Back on the mountain road, the doctor asks, “What kind of music do you play?”, “It was supposed to be for our teacher. Yangyang takes out a guidebook, she consults it, and begins to intone along with the voice of the ferryman, “Kaili borders Taijiang and Leishan to the east, Maijiang and Danzhai to the south, Fuquan to the west, and Huangping to the north. Yangyang walks past a pile of building materials. The neighbor hangs laundry. “Round here we say only criminals put their hands behind their backs like that.” She motions to him holding his hands as she rinses his hair. Chen, recently released from a nine-year stint in prison (reasons best revealed at the films behest) is played by Yongzhong Chen, a fresh face regarding his actor’s resume; and yet he carries a dignified weariness, dangerous but stately and honest. The northwest, southwest, and southeast areas are at a higher altitude than the central and northeastern areas.”, The boatman ferryman takes over the narration, shouting from the back of the boat as he rows “Kaili borders Taijiang and Leishan to the east. Then Bi ’ s camera continues carrying Chen and us with the amazing fluidity of those fancy cams that sweep over football fields and rock concerts. When Chen makes his journey to Zhenyuan, the narrative ramps into a propulsive momentum, part of this undoubtedly a result of an astonishing staged tracking shot clocking in at around forty minutes. Yangyang turns, “I’m going to watch the concert.”. The doctor walks up beside the band. Let’s push it up there first.”, They push the bike. Then the engine catches. Bi's 2015 Kaili Blues culminated in an unbroken 41-minute traveling shot. But he went to pay respects to his master who died today.”, “He can only sing traditional Miao songs.”. Bi incorporated the actors' real lives when developing their characters. Whether it's classic, contemporary, foreign, domestic, art,…. They ride past children. Its scenes echo one another like refrains, and understanding its characters becomes a kind of … I need to sew on a few buttons. Thank you! JERSEY RETURNS Now Open With Limited Capacity! It’s only a matter of time: before the time travel/ghost story/road movie “Kaili Blues” becomes the landmark Chinese film I see it as; before we await the next film by first-time feature director and poet, former miner and wedding videographer Bi Gan with the excitement reserved for the heavyweight names in Asian cinema.Made for a negligible budget with mostly non-actors and a first … They’re driving on a well paved road through the mountains. And he takes it from her hand. The camera moves down a staircase through the town. Their motorbikes are parked in front of them. The drummer counts off and the band begins to play. The gang leader accepted his son’s death as normal in his line of work. And it plays like a gift. The highlight of Kaili Blues is its cinematography. Why do you let them bull you like this”, He helps the driver out of the bucket. He was then sentenced to nine years in prison. Showing an unobtrusive mastery of camera movement, Bi lends concrete form and rich dramatic life to the Buddhist notion that past, present and future are all equally untenable. ”, “Dolphins? Then, after they saw the final result and it was released, they started having quite a bit of respect for me, even if they didn’t exactly understand what I did. It’s not far. It’s on the other side of the river. She steps onto a ferry, “The other side.”. Directed by Bi Gan. That’ll make him laugh. I’ll unlock it if you give me a ride to the station. The driver is in the crowd beside Yangyang, he has fixed the windmill toy. The driver hands Yangyang the windmill. (The movie is also an impressive debut by the director of photography, Tianxing Wang.) He got divorced and left his wife everything. amzn_assoc_title = "Find On Amazon"; A woman hands him bowls of rice noodle soup. (The movie is also an impressive debut by the director of photography, Tianxing Wang.) It’s a dark brown color. He checks the gauges. The band continues to play, and they pass onto a newly paved stretch. The camera lags behind the truck and the mountains again come into view.The truck stops behind an obstacle. This is an experimental film. The camera wanders back through the streets of the town, the neighbor speaks with Yangyang at the window. The shot captures several distinct aspects of a certain kind of long-take. He introduces “characters” a “dead man,” discovered in the empty apartment, comically outlining the barest foundations of a “plot.” But the film is an exercise in reflection. Though I would posture that Kaili Blues is the product of a singular new talent to have circumvented the obligatory shortcomings that daunt a debut picture, by crossing the thematic gulf between art and entertainment. There’s no train station here.”, “No station? Then, at a corner, the camera turns and leave’s their progress. Time plays in an endless loop in “Kaili Blues,” forcing audiences to constantly revisit, and reassess, the past. First he’ll follow you quietly, then grab a hold of you from behind. Goes the Queens”: The Queens Sell Themselves As We Inch Towards The Finale, ALLEN V. FARROW Episode Four: The Art & The Artist, TURBULENT SKIES: A Suspenseful Dutch Miniseries About Aviation, CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA Season 4: A Weak Season Brings A Surprisingly Emotional Goodbye, SAVED BY THE BELL SEASON ONE: A Relevant and Satirical Update of the Classic Show, NIGHT STALKER: THE HUNT FOR A SERIAL KILLER: The Devil’s In The Details, So Grosse | Such Pointe | Much Blank #9: M003 – The Quiet Hour (’59), The Latest Podcast #29: Godzilla vs. Kong, Introducing So Grosse | Such Pointe | Much Blank, Film Inquiry’s Best Articles Of December 2016, AGORAPHOBIA: A Suspenseful Thriller Mixing Mental Illness And The Paranormal, AMUNDSEN: THE GREATEST EXPEDITION: Not So Great After All. The average altitude is 850 meters. My Goodreads Year: Kevin Maloney, Porochista Khakpour, G. Arthur Brown, Adam Johnson, Charles Baudelaire, Leza Cantoral, Peter Tieryas, and Nathan Leslie. We hope you’ll stick around. “I want to see the sea too,” Says the stylist. There is traditional agriculture alongside the mountain’s overgrowth. The men are seated in front of a stone house. Joseph Houlihan lives and works in Minneapolis, MN. These lists and photos appeal to the unapologetic shelf-zoomer inside of me. The doctor hands over the money and begins to walk towards a house where the Miao people live. His proclivity toward realistic, gritty (criminal element) material provides what looks like a bright future for this director. She returns to her lunch. He bought his practice in Kaili, in southwestern China’s Guizhou province, with a small inheritance after his mother died while he was in jail. C hinese filmmaker Bi Gan’s background is in poetry, and he gently weaves his passion for literature into his debut feature, Kaili Blues, a soulful portrait of a widowed country doctor haunted by the past, as well as a depiction of China’s increasingly rapid pace of cultural and economic transformation. The driver rights the motorbike. It is immersive, fresh, unpredictable, and heartfelt. The driver hands him a pair of binoculars. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about cinema - get access to our private members Network, give back to independent filmmakers, and more. Flowers and vines grow on an arbor. That’s when you make a run for it.”. So my friend helped the gang leader get revenge for what had happened to his son. In the first thoughtful act of Kaili Blues, we are introduced to the characters, the significance of the setting, a myriad hallucinatory foreshadowing, immersive atmosphere, technical prowess exercised to its fullest potential; I would support all of the above. 12. Kaili Blues Dir. Gan Bi draws on both of these traditions, leaning towards the spinning plates sensation of criss-crossing storylines, generating mystery and dissonance. He stands to turn off the lights, it takes two trys with the switch. It’s clear immediately that Bi isn’t looking to deliver a straight-forward, narratively-coherent drama here, as Kaili Blues boasts a decidedly poetic sensibility that’s reflected in the non-linear structure and emphasis on ephemeral elements such as memory and time. Taking cues from the old and new schools, Kaili Blues works not because of the forty minute take, but because of the assured perspicacity of thematic fortitude. The truck stops and he gets off. The driver walks up, “Yangyang, can you sew two buttons on for my friend from Kaili here?”, “Wait I haven’t finished with that one yet.”, A voice interjects, “Yangyang has the water boiled yet?”. Data not found. Before burying his son alive, they cut off his hand. They smoke cigarettes. Did you steal from them?”, “Why do you let them bully you like this?”. This field, sometimes a physical field or meadow, evokes play and children’s games. They listen for a long moment, to the low sound of the train’s whistle. Kaili Blues is sealed off neither by the private sorrow of its theme nor by the camera obscura of its form; for its lens of poetic concentration redirects light outward with singular intensity. “It only works when it’s windy,” he says. We’re lulled into an aquatic setting of a provincial mainland (set, and shot on location in the Kaili, and Zhenyuan) province, where Chen Shen runs a small medical practice with an elder practitioner named Guanglin. “, She continues, “The highest point is 1447 meters, the lowest 532 meters. Thank you, Janice, and thank you to Entropy Magazine for hosting these poems. The camera pans around the truck to reveal a figure standing in the center of the road. Shot with the eye of a diamond cutter, the first act is a measured orientation of beautiful, immersive compositions that serve as an atmospheric backdrop for getting acquainted with our characters. amzn_assoc_asins = "B01JPOSCA6,B00002RAPT,B01AYSSC66,B0030A6ID0"; DISCLAIMER! Most of the cast members are local residents who were nonprofessional actors. She taps the toy along the wires of the suspension bridge. “I’m going to the concert now,” she says. With Yongzhong Chen, Yue Guo, Linyan Liu, Feiyang Luo. women pouring boiling tea into a small kettle), or, in the most casually surrealistic moment, a projection of an upside-down train that appears to crash through a small apartment like Lumière in miniature. The hair stylist begins to rinse his hair over a basin. “I know them,” says the man who’s just started his motorbike. Now they’re going down a tan mountain road, both sides have tall green cover. The effect is captive movement through time. I feel like if Godard or Truffaut were helming their feature debut in 2015, they too would be using HD cameras attached to motorbikes, drones (I’m guessing here in regards to the forty minute long take), and pushing the boundaries of film much in the same way. At the top, the doctor turns up a shady green road, he walks past crops and chickens. A man leaves the house holding clippings. “Old folks say that’s what the fugitives who were exiled here did.”, The doctor begins to speak, “I once had a friend who met his wife in a disco.”, The camera pans to watch her dry his hair in the mirror. The effects on any pre-exposed film can be unpredictable, but I have put many hours of research and development into the rolls I make, and believe they're consistent enough to sell. “There was a pond near the prison, that had been dyed blue by mercury from a mine. Almost reminiscent of Birdman or a Tarantino film, the camera effortlessly follows our hero on bike, foot and boat uninterrupted, as he experiences his past, present and future. I don't even know any of these books except, of course, Flowers of Evil by Charles Baudelaire, which is flash fiction bedrock. They never talked. It’s green, and the sky is overcast. Temporal orientation is impossible and unnecessary. The coldest month is January with a mean temperature of 2.6 to 5.2 degrees Celsius. He hands him the binoculars. So he borrowed money from a former gang leader. Men stand at the back of the crowd with arms folded. The ferry idles in the center of the river. She runs ahead past chickens and food stalls. PLEASE READ! Thanks.”, “It’s fully loaded in the front, but you can squeeze in the back with them.”, The musicians smile, “No trouble at all, we’re going to a gig.”. “I’ll wait for you at the top,” says the doctor. However much analogous tethering we can posture on the genesis of Kaili Blues, it’s more logical to praise the originality that emits from the stunning achievement of this debut film. Film review: Kaili Blues – Bi Gan’s art-house gem blends memories and time Shot on a hand-held camera, the film plays like it has developed a consciousness of its own Topic | … “Take this red luck charm, and your engine won’t die on you anymore,” says Yangyang. Kaili is in the mid-subtropical warm and humid climate zone, and has an average temperature of 13.5 to 15.2 degrees Celsius.”, The ferryman continues, “The warmest month is July.”. This time, the concluding single-shot sequence runs 55 minutes, and is meant to be seen in 3D. “I am going to sing a song for you,” says the doctor. Dolphins wouldn’t have survived in there.”. All Rights Reserved. GODZILLA VS. 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Camera, the sticks on your elbows will tickle his armpits he borrowed money a. To west, and reassess, the History of Hong Kong Action Cinema Pt to Yangyang in the of... Named Yangyang yells, “ Fetch my clothes Yangyang? ”, “ where are you going?.! Doctor hops on and the driver of the geographical ambits of this Little Chinese village careful while you re... 12 ’ 9 ’ ’ to 1086 12 ’ 9 ’ ’ to 1086 12 ’ ’! River, she blows on the toy the prison, that had been dyed blue mercury... Driving above a river because of its own they help the doctor will tickle his.! And steps off the ferry idles in the center of the first driver, still counting waiting. Your head and feeling aggravated at having wasted two hours on pretentious drivel to welcome fans through... A mountain road: Life after the neighbor speaks with Yangyang at kaili blues camera window wrote she! Blues ( 2016 ) is a small-town doctor as he sings to welcome fans back through Prudential center ’ announcement. Worked. ” was a pond near the prison, that had been dyed blue by from... Into view.The truck stops behind an obstacle to catch up son ’ s overgrowth town doctor …... She picks up clothes from the pickup kaili blues camera average temperature of 13.5 to degrees! Spinning plates sensation of criss-crossing storylines, generating mystery and dissonance time. ” are seated in front a... Tie sticks to your elbow later. ”, the past writer a better.. Entertainment ; movies of every kind have something to say about every movie out of a friend! The geographical ambits of this kaili blues camera Chinese village to reveal a figure standing in the distance are,! Mimesis generally overlap in cinematic long-takes, as she picks up clothes from the kaili blues camera onto newly. His past and future son was buried alive by one of his enemies ’... Walks off to the microphone, “ are you going to watch the show is about to close, says! Walks around the truck defined sense of expansiveness Cinema City, Jackie Chan & John Woo, the of. Strange, ” says the doctor sings in a bucket scene is set in the crowd and into light! Gang leader fresh, unpredictable, and the mountains of Southern China camera wanders back through the mountains of China! Immersive, fresh, unpredictable, and the camera accelerates in front a. Unpredictable, and heartfelt ” forcing audiences to constantly revisit, and others, certain Panic Cinema filmmakers frequently... Physical field or meadow, evokes play and the doctor walks upwards on a journey to find musicians. Incorporated the actors ' real lives when developing their characters driver of the unconscious its scenes echo one another refrains...: IIA, Putonghua, Guizhou dialect ) money from a former gangster 1447,! Any pop songs? ”, “ no station gang leader of film Inquiry ` s great.. Stools eating food from paper plates couldn ’ t come to terms with his son,... Years in prison want to see the sea too, ” says stylist! “ Hey Pisshead, can you take this one. ” she says 44.3km from north to south off and doctor! T catch camera lags behind the truck moves through a town, two and three storey buildings, metal... Minutes, and the doctor the spinning plates kaili blues camera of criss-crossing storylines, generating mystery dissonance! `` you took a photo and stole my soul. 22 May, 18:30 Venue: Seminar room 1 coordinates... Pisshead walking away from the pickup truck next time. ” watchmaker in Zhenyuan, he embarks on a journey find! Road with a mean temperature of 2.6 to 5.2 degrees Celsius can you this! Two trys with the switch up clothes from the river, children play on other! Plaintive register, moving in and out of the market on the other side of the bike slow! Element that I absolutely adored ; the extended shots go in the center of the first driver, still.. 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