American Dreams in China
Description
Revolution is hardly a foreign concept in China. That said, the country’s latest uprising has spawned unprecedented financial spoils as an ambitious new breed has discovered the entrepreneurial spirit and honed cutthroat business tactics. Celebrated director Peter Chan navigates this sea change through decades of seriocomic trials and hard-won triumphs experienced by three disparate college pals: bookish Cheng (Huang Xiaoming), romantic Wang (Tong Dawei) and driven Meng (Deng Chao). After having their hopes of stateside conquests dashed by bureaucracy and prejudice, they establish an empire on their home turf by transforming an abandoned factory into New Dream, an English-language school that churns out a veritable army of overachievers. Earning deserved comparisons to The Social Network, this crowd-pleaser examines the compromises, suspect practices and ideological schisms that arise in the wake of unexpected success. Using Christopher Doyle’s gorgeous cinematography to great effect, Chan also ensures that this rags-to-riches tale possesses the same sweeping drama as his martial arts epic The Warlords (SFIFF 2008). Inspired verbal sparring and intense culture clashes set the stage for the climactic boardroom brinksmanship that finds New Dream’s American detractors paying the price for their ignorance concerning Chinese culture. Conversely, Chan’s film leaves us a little more enlightened and thoroughly entertained. –Curtis Woloschuk
Born in Hong Kong and raised in Thailand, Peter Chan briefly studied film at UCLA in the early 1980s before returning to his birthplace and embarking on a career as a producer. Since making his directorial debut in 1991, he’s become one of Hong Kong’s most decorated and commercially successful filmmakers, with 2005’s Perhaps Love (SFIFF 2006) collecting a remarkable 29 international awards. In 2010, Chan was voted the Hong Kong Trade Development Council’s “most valuable filmmaker” thanks to his films’ robust performances at the box office.
Trailer
//player.vimeo.com/video/89748433?autoplay=1Film Details
Language Mandarin
Original Language Title Zhongguo hehuoren
Year 2013
Runtime 110
Country Hong Kong/China
Director Peter Ho-sun Chan
Producer Jojo Hui Yuet-chun, Peter Ho-sun Chan
Writer Zhou Zhi Yong, Zhang Ji, Aubrey Lam
Editor Qiao Yang
Cinematographer Christopher Doyle
Music Peter Kam
Cast Huang Xiaoming, Deng Chao, Tong Dawei, Du Juan
Print Source We Distribution Ltd/ kat@wedistribution.com