Saturday, October 25, 2014

The Flowers of War

China   Christian Bale   d/ Zhang Yimou

An extraordinary film set during the Japanese Rape of Nanking in 1937. CB plays a mortician come to a church to prepare a priest for burial and finds himself in the middle of the madness. He ends up as protector of a group of women and girls - half convent students, half prostitutes from a nearby brothel.

High budget film is based on a true story and features the very best production values Chinese cinema offers. Zhang proves that he still can produce world class work. The film is engaging, well-acted, a bit schmaltzy here and there but not enough to take away the emotional impact.

An overlooked treasure.

8

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