Knife in the clear water film

Another favorite of mine at the hong kong international film festival earlier this year was the. Apr 18, 2017 the official competition of the 2017 las palmas film festival featured two movies in which animals have prominent roles. But those who persevere past the lack of scripted audio and familiar hollywood action will discover a cinematographic treasure trove of artfully planned vignettes. Knife in the clear water 2016, wangs feature directorial debut, premiered at the busan iff.

The official competition of the 2017 las palmas film festival featured two movies in which animals have prominent roles. Both ran the numbers, looked at what got slotted before, and traded in the danger of artistic risk for the wellworn laws of supply and demand. With little dialogue or action, all attention is on the direction, the framing, and the cinematography. Noz w wodzie is a 1962 polish drama film cowritten and directed by roman polanski, which was nominated for academy award for best foreign language film. Knife in the clear water 2017 seattle international film. In the far mountains of ningxia province, together with his son, old ma zishan is mourning his wife. In the far mountains of ningxias province, the old ma zishan and his son start mourning his wife. Nominated for an academy award, knife in the water failed to win against the dazzling and flamboyant federico fellinis 8 12, but at least it was the first time a polish film had ever received an oscar nomination, and it also introduced american audiences to a new brand of psychological cinemaalmost chamber cinema, with a handful. On their way to a sailing trip, an aging husband and wife invite along an emphatic young hitchhiker out of sheer patronization.

Knife in the clear water 2016 letterboxd social film. Knife in the clear water is an aesthetic achievement, combining disparate elements from painting and cinema to craft a unique visual experience. Awardwinning director focuses on chinese muslims living in. Festivals, selective list marrakech iff 2016, competition busan iff 2016, new currents competition vancouver iff 2016, dragons and tigers award for young cinema.

Oct 07, 2016 an old farmer has difficulty giving up his bull for sacrifice in knife in the clear water, a somber elegy richly lensed like a rotating gallery of oil paintings. Script and preproduction work on knife in the clear water 2016, his debut film as director, was completed in 2010, while production was completed in 2016. The film is deeply concerned with lives on the verge of disappearing into the past, dislodged from their traditions by migration, poverty, and modernization. Simple yet significant, magical yet unexoticized, knife in the clear water is a film that renders the earthy enchanting and the spiritual almost tangible. Boasting melancholic visions of western china and remarkably evocative performances from an entirely nonprofessional cast, knife in the clear water is an incredibly heartfelt and beautifully. He can sense his fate, he knows that his days are now counted, knows that he will be sacrificed. Zishan isnt against it, but his sorrow and his love for the old animal make him wonder. It was an unusual film to come out of the polish film industry, which at the time was controlled by the ruling communist party, and leaned heavily towards promoting socialist ideology. Polanskis first feature film, it features three characters in a story of rivalry and sexual tension.

While this film lacks the aesthetic or philosophical depths of tarkovskys work, its swarthy lighting of primitive, electricityfree interiors and. Knife in the clear water a fascinating and scenic portrait of the hui, a chinese muslim minority in the ningxia province, located in the misty north of china. Apr 06, 2018 the film premiered in venice in 2015 and won many awards including at tokyo filmex, golden horse awards, apsa, vesoul. Asian shadows chinese shadows as sales all rights, world. While news related to muslim ethnic groups in china has largely focused on uighurs and their separatist movement, this minimalist debut by.

Knife in the clear water 2016 directed by wang xuebo. Knife in the water the current the criterion collection. The film won the new currents award at the busan international film festival 2016. So ends the only flashback in knife in the clear water, the formal, auteurist debut of emerging directorproducer wang xuebo. Knife in the clear water shows the uncompromising life of the hui, chinese muslims who live simply off the land. Loved by everyone in the village and the family, her son wants to sacrifice their only bull for. Knife in the clear water is an incredibly heartfelt and beautifully tragic portrayal of a patriarchs unspoken bond with his bull wangs audacious vision is apparent from the very start, as the film unspools in the boxedin 4. Inviting the young man onto the boat with them, andrzej begins to subtly torment him. Knife in the clear water fairbank center for chinese studies. Started in 2010, knife in the clear water was completed in 2016, and is the filmmakers first feature as a director. Knife in the clear water nederlandse trailer youtube.

Knife in the clear water asia pacific screen awards. Its next stop is in the vancouver festivals young cinema competition. Knife in the clear water by xuebo wang festival scope. Knife in the water 1962 was polish director roman polanskis remarkably assured first feature film, and, as it would turn out, his only polish feature to date. Even his prayers and the imam dont seem to erase his doubts. Ma zishan yang shengcang is an aging muslim farmer, part of the hui minority. Tradition forces the elderly farmer ma zishan to slaughter his only bull for the ceremony to commemorate his wife who died forty days before. It was an unusual film to come out of the polish film industry, which at the time was controlled by the ruling communist party, and leaned heavily towards.

Winner of the new currents award at the 2016 busan international film festival and based on the story by shi shuqing who also cowrote the. In a hotel room in paris, a doctor comes out of the shower and finds that his wife has disappeared. The film is an adaptation of a novel by the same name written by shi shuqing, which has won the 2nd luxun literary prize a top literary prize in china decadelong project. Knife in the clear water is a leisurely paced, heartbreaking tale that takes its sweet time to build an emotional crescendo that will hit even the most callous of a person. Sportswriter leon niemczyk and his wife jolanta umecka invite babyfaced hitchhiker zygmunt. The film premiered in venice in 2015 and won many awards including at tokyo filmex, golden horse awards, apsa, vesoul. International movies ive seen english speakingswedish films excluded. Until one morning the old bull stops eating and drinking. Viff 2016 knife in the clear water schema magazine. It is then that the old man realises the full effect of his decision to sacrifice the one work animal he has left. First film completed 2016 in the far mountains of ningxia province, the old ma zishan and his son start mourning his wife. Knife in the clear water is a very unique film on the hui people, a chinese muslim community. In 2007, wang first read the novel knife in the clear water.

Started in 2010, the project of knife under the clear water was completed in 2016, and is wang xuebos first feature. In this contemplative film about life, death and survival, ma zishan, an ageing huichinese from ningxia province, is facing a dilemma. Busan international film festival 2016 netpac award, special mention cinematography, hawaii international film festival 2016. Knife in the water 1962 letterboxd social film discovery. Knife in the water noz w wodzie was the first feature film effort of polish director roman polanski. With leon niemczyk, jolanta umecka, zygmunt malanowicz, anna ciepielewska. The fact that in his debut wang xuebo allowed himself to be inspired by tarkovski and painters andrew wyeth and jeanfrancois millet can be seen in the painterly interiors, the 4. A stunningly beautiful meditation on life and death, set among the muslim minority of china.

He and his family eke out an existence farming on an arid moonscape in chinas northwest ningxia province. With shengcang yang, shengcang yang, chenghua li, chengyou li. About beatrice lew beatrice is an editorial assistant at schema and an english honours student at ubc. When a young hitchhiker joins a couple on a weekend yacht trip, psychological warfare breaks out as the two men compete for the womans attention. The water knife by the reliable paolo bacigalupi is a story of a nearfuture america suffering through the destruction of the american southwest due to water shortages. April 6 2018 knife in the clear water crows and sparrows. Loved by everyone in the village and the family, the son wants to sacrifice their only bull for. An old farmer has difficulty giving up his bull for sacrifice in knife in the clear water, a somber elegy richly lensed like a rotating gallery of oil paintings. Knife in the water 1963 knife in the water 1962 was polish director roman polanskis remarkably assured first feature film, and, as it would turn out, his only polish feature to date. Knife in the clear water is a leisurely paced, heartbreaking tale that takes its sweet time to build an emotional crescendo that will hit even the most callous of a. The draining of the aquifers, combined with the lack of snowmelt from the rockies, leaves california, nevada, arizona, and displaced texans all struggling in a world where. Knife in the clear water 2016 ma zishan yang shengcang is an aging muslim farmer, part of the hui minority. The story is simple, yet the implications of its characters emotions and actions are profound. The movie knife in the clear water premiered at the busan international film festival on october 7.

Knife in the clear water by wang xuebo trailer youtube. Film synopsis a rare glimpse in to the tranquil, spiritual lives of islamic devotion of the hui people, a littleknown chinese muslim community in a remote northwest province of mainland china. Knife in the clear water at eye film in amsterdam eye. This remarkable collection of contemporary chinese short stories feature unique urban and rural themes and showcase the work of some of chinas most criticallyacclaimed and upandcoming writers. An allegory on loss and sacrifice paints the internalize agony of an old farmer, effusing melancholic lament thickly layered by mundane activities. Director wang xuebo spent nearly a decade realizing this film, that offers a rare glimpse into the world of chinas hui muslims. Reportedly inspired by tarkovsky, andrew wyeth, and jeanfrancois millet, knife in the clear water was shot in the boxy 4. The film was completely shot in the xihaigu area of the ningxia province. Knife in the clear water welcome to subscribe to china zone duration. A film like knife in the clear water exists because filmmakers and festivals lack a vision of the future. His wife, beloved by everyone in the village, has died and tradition demands that a ceremony is held for her forty days later. A knife in clear water and other stories shi shuqing and others on.

The water knife cuts deep equal parts thriller and alarm call, paolo bacigalupis new novel depicts a future america ravaged by drought. Wang was a producer on tharlo, the film from tibetan director pena tseden which won the best adapted screenplay award at the 52nd golden horse film festival last year. From a budding idea to an award nomination, knife in the clear water has taken wang xuebo almost a decade to complete. Counting pema tseden as well as hong kong helmer derek yee and chinese director zhang meng as executive producers, knife in the clear water will definitely cut its way through the festival circuit. When the hitchhiker is accidentally knocked overboard, the husbands panic results in unexpected consequences. Knife in the water has garnered acclaim from film critics since its release, and is one of polanskis best. Bengaluru international film festival biffes an allegory on loss and sacrifice paints the internalize agony of an old farmer, effusing melancholic lament thickly layered by mundane activities. He soon finds himself caught up in a world of intrigue, espionage, gangsters, drugs and murder. Chinese producer wang xuebo started his career working with tibetan filmmaker pema tseden.

A film of weathered landscapes and weathered faces, it moves to the. Knife in the clear water is slim on dialogue, and, at times, viewers may find the slowpanning landscapes a little too reflective. Knife in the water watch turner classic movies on tcm. The film knife in the clear water is the story of an old widower who tries to keep his beloved bull from being slaughtered iffk. His producing credits include the hammer and sickle are sleeping 20, tharlo 2015 and free and easy 2016. Another favorite of mine at the hong kong international film festival earlier this year was the film, knife in the clear water. Director wang xuebo and executive producer zhao yihan scheduled to attend showing. Awardwinning director focuses on chinese muslims living. Knife in the clear water hui muslim story at busan. Roman polanskis first feature is a brilliant psychological thriller that many critics still consider among his greatest work. On their way to an afternoon on the lake, husband and wife andrzej and krystyna nearly run over a young hitchhiker.