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Mountains May Depart
Mountains May Depart
7.5
/10
1,601 Ratings

MOUNTAINS MAY DEPART

山河故人 | Shan he gu ren

Directed by Jia Zhangke
China, France, 2015
Drama

Synopsis

Fenyang, 1999: Tao has two suitors, Zhang and his best friend Liangzi. Tao decides, with a note of regret, to marry Zhang, an aspiring entrepreneur. Flash-forward 15 years, the couple’s son Dollar is paying a visit to his now-estranged mother and everyone has grown more distant in time and space.

Synopsis

Fenyang, 1999: Tao has two suitors, Zhang and his best friend Liangzi. Tao decides, with a note of regret, to marry Zhang, an aspiring entrepreneur. Flash-forward 15 years, the couple’s son Dollar is paying a visit to his now-estranged mother and everyone has grown more distant in time and space.

Our take

The films of Sixth Generation auteur Jia Zhangke are history-spanning, masterful delights. Mountains May Depart is set in the past, present, and future—each innovatively shown in a different aspect ratio. This makes for a rivetingly modern Chinese melodrama guided by the star presence of Zhao Tao.