Der See der wilden Gänse (2019)

Der See der wilden Gänse: Directed by Yi’nan Diao. With Ge Hu, Gwei Lun-Mei, Fan Liao, Regina Wan. A gangster on the run sacrifices everything for his family and a woman he meets while on the lam.

“If you enjoy neo noir, specifically films from directors such as Michael Mann (Thief, Heat) or Jean Pierre Melville (Le Cercle Rouge especially) then this will be right up your rain slicked neon lit boulevard. Similarly itu0026#39;ll likely appeal to fans of u0026#39;Asian extremeu0026#39; cinema and indeed anyone interested in or simply curious about contemporary China and her cultural products.nGrounded in believable realism whilst being highly stylised by virtue of action taking place in locales which exist, not film sets. This isnu0026#39;t a China of shiny high skyscrapers and jaw dropping surveillance technologies, instead itu0026#39;s one of dingy backstreets, cheap restaurants, second hand stores, a cheap and plasticky sheen lit mainly with lurid artificial light. I say u0026#39;Chinau0026#39; in quotation marks because as another reviewer pointed out itu0026#39;s set in a particular province using local dialect. Reminding us China isnu0026#39;t some monolith, that thereu0026#39;s great diversity in this huge nation. Thereu0026#39;s an obvious debt to films by Hong Kong director John Woo – it rains a lot, most of the action takes place at night soaked in a putrid colour cast of neon and sodium street lights. Woo of course being indebted himself to an earlier generation of directors…n125cc motorbikes and scooters are, for most people living on the Latin American, Asian, African continents, their main experience of private motorised transport. Wild Goose Lake is innovative and impressive in this form of transport (rather than conventional gangster cinematic conventions of big black SUVu0026#39;s with tinted windows) being central to the narrative.nIt is something of a slow burner and I found myself restless during the first twenty minutes. Which is the point, to make you the viewer feel what the characters are feeling, inertia. Waiting. Not quite sure whatu0026#39;s going on. If youu0026#39;re more accustomed to Hollywood action gangster movies this will reward but you need to be patient. Give it time and it will deliver. I promise. Donu0026#39;t let subtitles put you off. I watched it in France with French subtitles and didnu0026#39;t have trouble following. While relations between characters became confusing that didnu0026#39;t detract from my enjoyment this movie is driven by action and mise en scene rather than dialogue.nThe mise en scene or what you see works to reflect and comment on the interior psychological (and exterior) worlds of the characters. One amazing scene towards the climax set in a dimly lit apartment block alludes to trash, with the implication of the characters as literally rubbish. By contrast, another scene uses washing machines in a massively impressive stroke of sheer stylistic inventiveness.nCreative violence is all the more astounding being beautifully choreographed, consisting of actual stunts instead of fast cut editing and CGI. Once again, stylistically satisfying innovativeness to the art of killing will delight martial arts fans and jaded movie goers (such as this reviewer) alike. However, what else would you expect from the culture which gave the world kung fu and pioneered the martial arts film genre?nFrench director Jean Pierre Melville nailed the thin line dividing cops from gangsters in films like Le Cercle Rouge (a cop is literally joined to his quarry with a handcuff, said cop lives alone with his pet cats whou0026#39;re surely analogous to the criminals he pursues). A similar line is drawn here, making explicit the symbiotic relationship the police have with the criminals they pursue.nA similar fatalism also operates and I loved the way that, even though we know where the Ge Hu character is headed, the journey there is nonetheless thoroughly enjoyable.nLiu Aiai is superb as the poker faced hooker. Instead of the femme fatale, sheu0026#39;s all the more mysterious, her motivations never quite clear. Sheu0026#39;s being used, in that sense sheu0026#39;s the quintessential noir character caught up in events beyond her control. However sheu0026#39;s aware sheu0026#39;s being used and it suits her purposes to pretend otherwise. I need to watch this film again. My purpose here isnu0026#39;t to describe the plot but to highlight why I think you should watch this film.nFinally, the total lack of irony or post modern referencing of other films is a delight. Sure thereu0026#39;s the familiar ingredients of neo noir but theyu0026#39;re combined into something very fresh and exciting. Watch for the astonishing u0026#39;Rasputinu0026#39; disco scene and I think youu0026#39;ll agree.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI wouldnu0026#39;t have thought there was anything more left to squeeze out of neo noir then along comes this. Astounding, audacious and amazing.”