Jia Zhangke

[DarkImbecile]

Jia Zhangke (1970 - )



"My expression, my view on history, my view on the truth must be independent, but I tell myself not to get marginalized, because being marginalized means you can’t do anything. Marginalization can be a kind of pleasant stance—I really admire many of those people—but I would rather expend enormous energy trying to dance with the many levels of the era in which we live."

Filmography

Features (* = Documentary)
Xiao Shan Going Home (1995)
Xiao Wu (1997)
Platform (2000)
Unknown Pleasures (2002)
The World (2004)
Dong* (2006)
Still Life (2006)
Useless* (2007)
24 City (2008)
I Wish I Knew* (2010)
A Touch of Sin (2013)
Mountains May Depart (2015)
Ash is Purest White (2018)

Shorts (* = Documentary short)
"One Day in Beijing" [student film] (1994)
"Du Du" [student film] (1996)
"In Public"* (2001)
"The Condition of Dogs"* (2001)
"Our Ten Years" (2007)
"Cry Me a River" (2008)
"Black Breakfast"* [Stories on Human Rights segment] (2008)
"Remembrance"* (2009)
"Cao Fei"* [Yulu segment] (2011)
"Pan Shiyi"* [Yulu segment] (2011)
"untitled"* [3.11 Sense of Home segment] (2011)
"untitled"* [Venice 70: Future Reloaded segment] (2013)
"Smog Journeys" (2015)
"The Hedonists" (2016)
"Revive" [Where Has Time Gone? segment] (2017)

Web Resources
2001 interview with Stephen Teo, Senses of Cinema
2004 interview with Valerie Jaffee, Senses of Cinema
2008 interview with Edmund Lee, Time Out
2009 New Yorker Profile, by Evan Osnos
2009 interview with Andrew Chan, Film Comment
"Speaking of "the Sixth Generation": I Don't Believe That You Can Predict Our Ending" by Jia Zhangke (2010)
2013 interview with Sam Adams, The Dissolve
2016 interview with Paul Dallas, Reverse Shot
2019 Masterclass at the Rotterdam International Film Festival

Forum Discussion
BD 12 The World
Still Life & Dong (Jia Zhangke, 2006)
24 City (Jia Zhangke, 2008)
A Touch of Sin (Jia Zhang-ke, 2013)
Three Films by Jia Zhangke

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

A quick search didn't bring up any existing thread for Jia, just a few for individual films, so here we go. (He really ought to have a filmmaker thread by now, but I haven't got time to set one up. If anybody else would like to oblige, please feel free.)

This is just to report in on his latest:

I WISH I KNEW

Jia’s new film is a dry, lyrical, very smartly organized documentary that neatly packages a number of different takes on recent Chinese history into one long, elegant chain. At the broadest level, it’s a 20th century history of China (and, necessarily, Taiwan and Hong Kong), but it’s presented as a history of Shanghai, and this history of Shanghai is in turn presented as a series of personal histories, each one having some nudging connection (be it chronological, historical or geographical) to the one that follows. Plus, there are wordless scenes of Jia regular Tao Zhao wandering around the city that run like a thread through the entire film.

A further layer is added in the form of relevant film clips, often accompanied by interviews with the director of the film, the actor in the clip, or, in one case, the model worker Huang Baomei, whose life was made into a biopic in the 1950s, so the film also doubles as a history of Chinese cinema of sorts. There’s a nice touch where Jia at times subtly incorporates stylistic tropes of the respective filmmakers into his own surrounding footage. Thus, documentary footage from Lou Ye’s Suzhou River is followed by 2009 footage of the same sites, punctuated by similar jump cuts. Rebecca Pan’s interview, accompanying a clip from Days of Being Wild, is shot reflected in glass, though this is only clearly revealed when, at the end, a slight shift in angle causes her to gently vanish. An interview with Hou Hsiao-hsien, about Flowers of Shanghai, is shot on a mountain train, in a gorgeous homage to Goodbye, South, Goodbye. Other films discussed / invoked are Red Persimmon and Spring in a Small Town. Jia doesn’t seem to have much interest in 5th Generation filmmakers, which I suppose is not really surprising.

It’s an impeccable film, but it’s not about to leap to the top of my Jia favourites, partly because the film is so carefully controlled it keeps emotional resonance at bay – whereas in his earlier features Jia manages that particular dynamic very well indeed. It does re-emphasise, if anybody remained unconvinced, that Yu Lik-wai is one of the world’s finest cinematographers. The movie is consistently handsome and quietly visually inventive without being at all glossy or ostentatious.

Mainland DVD out now -- the packaging lists English subs, but I haven't been able to give it a spin yet, so caveat emptor. It should show up at English-friendly retailers soon enough.

EDIT: English subs are present and seem fine, except for some dropped punctuation and an ugly, skinny serif font that's distressingly common on mainland DVDs. The big problem is that the runtime is 115 minutes and the theatrical version was around twenty minutes longer (136m according to Variety). There was a report that Jia was fighting the censors over some cuts and I guess he lost -- although The World was severely cut by the mainland distributor just to make it more "commercial", so maybe that happened here too. Anyway, don't buy the mainland DVD.

Also, Useless has finally been released in Korea, with English subs. I might've missed something, but I think this is the first English-subbed release, or possibly the first DVD release period. I suspect distributors might've been unsure what to do with it because it's barely feature-length (80 minutes) and isn't directly linked to one of his "big" films the way Dong was (although I found certain thematic links to The World).

[Dadapass]

Jia Zhangke reflects on Sixth Generation cinema

[RobertB]

I don’t agree with Fanciful Norwegian’s recommendation not to buy the Chinese DVD of I Wish I Knew. The picture is excellent, subtitles by Tony Rayns, and dts 5.1 sound. If you like the film probably depends on if you are interested in the two subjects, the history of Chinese films and life in Shanghai when the city was taken over by the communists in 1949. The pictures of modern Shanghai are beautiful, even when it shows ugly places, but that’s not what the film is really about.

Some highlights for me are the oldies who remember life in Shanghai before 1949, and who now can go to a dance where the old American hits are played, an interview with the lead actress from Spring in a Small Town, and an interview with the Chinese production assistant to Antonioni’s China film. The poor assistant was accused of being counter-revolutionist, not having stopped Antonioni from making a film that didn’t please the party top.

I’m not surprised if 20 minutes have been removed by the producers. The film doesn’t criticise those who left Shanghai in 1949 and went to Hong-Kong or Taiwan. I Wish I Knew does end with some success stories from modern Shanghai, but the over-all feeling you get is still that life for a long time was better for those who left Shanghai, than for those who stayed on in 1949.

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

The new cut of Platform that was mentioned almost off-handedly in Cinema Scope last year is still in the works, with Jia currently scrounging up funds in Busan. No info on any specific differences, but it seems some of the post-Venice deletions came about because they didn't have the budget to clear certain songs. (I'd heard the Venice version had at least a couple more performances by the All-Star Rock 'n' Breakdance Electronic Band, so maybe these were the culprits?) Jia also hopes to finally release the movie in mainland theaters.

[mff]

Those of you, that still haven't seen it, may have read about the awkward third part of Mountains May Depart, but nothing can actually prepare you for it. The embarrassment is complete when that one line involving Google translate is uttered. Impossible to take the film seriously after that (and I can't blame anyone for giving up earlier either)

And the supposedly "moving" closing scene is just a bad parody of a similar moment from Platform.

I guess the fact that a character was named Dollar should have been enough of a warning sign, but I never expected such a great filmmaker to ever make something like this.

[hearthesilence]

This Sunday afternoon, Metrograph is screening the rare, 210-minute extended cut of Platform on an imported archival print (with special thanks to producer Shozo Ichiyama).

Anyone else see this extended version? Is it the Venice version, and if so, is that the preferred version (i.e. better than the theatrical cut)?

[hearthesilence]

Jonathan Rosenbaum apparently thought the theatrical cut was better. "Originally 192 minutes long, the film was recut by Jia to its current 155 minutes and improved in the process." (This is me indulging in sour grapes as I won't be able to attend the screening, hah. Tickets are still available, so get them while you can.)

Kevin Lee at sensesofcinema preferred the longer cut and had this to say in the footnotes:

"What has been reduced have been the production numbers (including the most hilarious scene I recall from either version of the film, in which all members of the All Star Rock n’ Breakdance Electronic Band: long-haired rock n’ rollers, go-go dancer girls and slippery footed breakdancers, all take stage at once for their finale. Why they excised this of all scenes is beyond me. Not only is it the juiciest bone one can throw an audience, but it’s also the one moment where the efforts of these young aspiring artists have their greatest moment in the sun, before they disband forever into the anonymity of adulthood.)

"For what it’s worth, here I would like to describe the coda to the original version of the film, which has since been excised from the 'distributor’s cut.' It begins with a long shot of a silhouetted figure standing in the midst of a vast and desolate landscape, firing a rifle towards the sun lingering on the horizon (whether it is rising or setting is not made clear, and it adds to the alluring mystery of the image). The camera pans away from the armed figure until it reveals the entire ensemble of the movie, dressed in their performance costumes, standing together and facing the sun, in such a way that resembles the idealized human profiles depicted on Chinese currency. These people, whose collective hopes have been dashed over the course of the film, are given one final chance to re-occupy a common space, bravely facing the sun that symbolizes the setting of an old age, or the dawning of a new, or both. This is one of the most beautifully lyrical and humanistic images I’ve witnessed in the recent history of cinema, and for some reason it’s not even in the final cut."

[Roger Ryan]

...Anyone else see this extended version? Is it the Venice version..?

A quick internet search reveals that the "Venice" version was the 192 minute cut that Rosenbaum discusses. This 210 minute version is the first cut Jia Zhang-ke did of the film - he trimmed it to 192 minutes then trimmed it again to the final 155 minute cut.

[hearthesilence]

Ugh, so there will be four cuts then - this cut, the 192 minute cut, the 155 minute cut, and the new one whenever it comes out (which hopefully will indeed be definitive so I never have to bother with the others again).

[Michael Kerpan]

I assume that most of us will never ever have a chance to see the full version. I've envied Kevin for years over his ability to see this.

[hearthesilence]

Aren't you by Boston? You could jump on an early bus to NYC, catch this at Metrograph, and ride back afterwards.

MOST of the seats are still empty right now (all tickets are sold online and you pick your seats from a chart).

[Michael Kerpan]

I already have 2 (concurrent) events here in Boston at that time.

[hearthesilence]

Just found out they'll be screening it on Wednesday night at 7pm too, if that helps anyone. (Would be a late night though.) The Sunday screening is at 2:30pm.

Also, here's an excerpt from Stephen Teo's interview with Jia for sensesofcinema:

ST: There are two versions of the film, a longer uncut version running over three hours, and a shorter version that runs two-and-a-half hours. Which version are you more satisfied with?

JZ: I am more satisfied with the shorter version because the longer version was something that we did in a hurry. I feel sorry for my investors because I had to prolong the schedule as I was waiting for the right season. And I was revising the screenplay non-stop. They asked me to hurry up the production in order to make the Venice Film Festival, and I did so. The shorter version is a distributor’s cut. But I myself wanted to cut it down to two-and-a-half hours, the better for it to be shown in theatres.

[whaleallright]

Wow. I may actually make the drive to NYC (3 hours) to see this. How's the parking on the Lower East Side on a Sunday afternoon?

[beamish13]

The Metrograph passed along some of the Chantal Akerman prints they rented from the Royal Belgian Film Archive to the Cinefamily in L.A., so I've got my fingers crossed that it'll head out west soon.

[JonoQ]

It looks like the Metrograph website has been updated - it now lists the film at 193 minutes instead of 210. Does that mean it's actually the Venice cut, rather than the first cut?

Did anyone go to the screening on Sunday?

[zedz]

It looks like the Metrograph website has been updated - it now lists the film at 193 minutes instead of 210. Does that mean it's actually the Venice cut, rather than the first cut?

Did anyone go to the screening on Sunday?

Is the supposed 210 minute cut actually documented anywhere (compared to the Venice cut)? It's a suspiciously round number (exactly three and a half hours) for an initial cut, and Jia doesn't mention it in the interview snippet above. Actually, the notion that he was rushing to get the Venice cut completed on time rather suggests there wasn't any 'finished' version before that. It seems to me that this ultra-long version might be apocryphal, based on the literalizing of somebody's talk of the original "three and a half hour" version.

[Roger Ryan]

I found the reference to a "first cut [which] clocked in at 210 minutes" in this e-book link to a BFI analysis of the "Hometown Trilogy" (2009) by Michael Berry. That's not to say that the cut was considered anything but a rough assembly, or work print, that was then cut down to the 192 minute version. As "zedz" notes, the round number does indicate an approximate length of something still in the flux of editing. It's possible that someone at Metrograph understood that the screening would be of the "first cut" and went on-line to find the same factoid I found, not realizing that this running time did not reflect the legitimate "first cut" that played in Venice.

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

I've seen other sources give the runtime of the first cut as a more precise 212 minutes. The published screenplay has an afterword by Gu Zheng (a classmate of Jia who worked as an AD on the film) where he writes of the cast and crew groggily stumbling out of a midnight screening of this cut, wondering if it would ever actually be released. (Jia himself ultimately decided that even the 193-minute cut was too long to be commercially viable, though the co-producers were willing to accept it at that length.) I'm not surprised the Metrograph actually showed the Venice cut, because I can't imagine why the 212-minute version would've ever been subtitled, and I doubt it still exists except maybe on a video copy somewhere.

[Red Screamer]

Jia Zhangke gets in on the auteur Apple commercial trend with a pretty run-of-the-mill Apple commercial

[hearthesilence]

Godard did soap commercials. They pay more bills and require a lot less work.

[dda1996a]

Let's not forget his Schick commercial

[senseabove]

Since this popped up, might as well mention for the West Coasters that Jia will be introducing/Q+Aing a few screenings the weekend of Feb. 8th in the parallel retrospectives at Berkeley Art Museum/Pacific Film Archive and SFMOMA that run for the first three weeks of February:
https://bampfa.org/program/rhythms-life-jia-zhangke
https://www.sfmoma.org/event/series/mod ... a-zhangke/

[DarkImbecile]

Jia’s 90-minute masterclass at the Rotterdam International Film Festival