The flaubert invocation is a red herring served up for foreign. How this film was not considered as a submission for the foreign language film oscar is baffling beyond belief. As the male voiceover informs us at the outset, as though he is launching a solemn bedtime story, the film is based on a 17thcentury chinese morality tale about an. I am not madame bovary feng xiaogang, 2016 seattle. Cinema omnivores rating of the film i am not madame bovary cinema omnivore 7. A comedy of bureaucracy like many a film of the romanian new wave, but rather than the drab and bleak institutional ironies of the eastern bloc, feng xiaogangs satire is bright and sprightly, bouncing along its tunnel visions for two and a half hours of contradiction made irresolvable by a. Luo pans cinematography is noteworthy for the pristine beauty of its images, and their quality is displayed to maximum effect due to imaginative use of aspect ratios. Set largely around a small provincial town, the filmadapted by liu zhenyun from his own novelis about a woman named li xuelian, or lian fan. An overlong kafkaesque comedy drama about a womans bid to save her reputation runs out of steam. Based on liu zhenyuns 2012 novel, i did not kill my husband, i am not madame bovary is a contemporary dramedy rooted in the humour and irony of modern chinese life. Dec 05, 2016 the absorbing film is surely cruel to its dogged heroine, but if it urges even one petty official in the audience to rethink his priorities, it must already be considered a job well done.
I am not madame bovary is a film directed by feng xiaogang with fan bingbing, da peng, fan wei, guo tao, year. I am not madame bovary is famously presented in a circle frame with predominantly flat compositions, and characters are usually framed in medium or full shots. Fan bingbing in i am not madame bovary a peasant woman with a grievance drags it all the way up the ladder of bureaucracy in feng xiaogangs social satire. As the male voiceover informs us at the outset, as though he is launching a solemn bedtime story, the film is based on a 17thcentury chinese morality tale about an unfaithful wife named pan jinlian who conspires. Refusing to accept the findings of the court, li appeals to the chief justice, the county chief, and even the. Director feng xiaogangs i am not madame bovary, with fan bingbing as the central character, is not a retelling of gustave flauberts vicious sendup of the french bourgeoisie. This sets the scene for feng xiaogangs i am not madame bovary, which tells the story of li xuelian fan bingbing, a woman from a small town in china who sues her exhusband on the grounds that their divorce was fake. This is not, however, a sharply biting satire of chinese power, which would likely have landed the film in trouble with chinese censors. Mar 22, 2017 feng xiaogangs i am not madame bovary clears china censorship november 2, 2016 judge not laughing, calls madame bovary a shallow insult december 3, 2016 china film insider reports on and writes about the people and companies making movies that soon may help to bridge the gaps in understanding between china, the united states, and the.
Qin remarries six months later, as agreed, but to a different woman. This film is equal parts social commentary and satire of the chinese government. Pan jinian is a chinese term for a promiscuous woman, and the title has been translated in other. I am not madame bovary is a chinese film with dream imagery and a nightmare title.
I am not madame bovary palm springs international film festival. May 21, 2017 i am not madame bovary is built on a strong performance by fan bingbing and a caustic eye toward government bureaucracy. I am not madame bovary archive zurich film festival. I am not madame bovary gleaming with perfection financial. The sarcasm of superstar director feng xiaogang reduces chinese bureaucracy, the legal system and government inefficiency to ashes in i am not madame bovary, but risks doing the same for audiences. Nov 17, 2016 but overall, i am not madame bovary was a funny, charming, satirical, feminist tale that shows both director feng xiaogang and actress fan bingbing at their best. Sep 09, 2016 the sarcasm of superstar director feng xiaogang reduces chinese bureaucracy, the legal system and government inefficiency to ashes in i am not madame bovary, but risks doing the same for audiences. The film, also adapted by zhenyun, tells the satirical story of a village woman, lian xuelian fan bingbing, who after being swindled into a divorce, attempts to sue her now exhusband, qin yuhe li zonghan. When li xuelian travels to beijing, the frame opens up to a larger rectangle that, while still smaller than your typical cinema aspect ratio, is fitting for the capitals larger, less. Having won top prize at the 2016 san sebastian film festival, i am not madame bovary should allow feng more distinction abroadhes snagged plenty of awards throughout a career which began in 1994 with his debut feature lost my love, and picked up a special mention in venice for 2006s the banquet a glossy, bustling, action oriented. But, the doggedly persistent lian will not let go and brings her case to the highest levels in i am not madame bovary. I am not madame bovary, the heroine of this uneven chinese.
Fan bingbing is on fine form as an obstinate divorceeto. Furious, li files a lawsuit with the county court but loses the case. In november of last year, a judge called the movie an insult to her profession. Overall, i am not madame bovary is a tongueincheek criticism of chinese politics, as well as their view of women and sexuality. I am not madame bovary is a very round chinese comedy with brechtian overtones. Fipresci prize at the toronto film festival and golden shell award at the san sebastian film festival. Fan bingbing is on fine form as an obstinate divorceetobe in a singular film that is. She cant sleep for much of the night, and her health is deteriorating, he said, adding that elderly neighbors in her housing estate now openly mock her. May 26, 2017 this sets the scene for feng xiaogangs i am not madame bovary, which tells the story of li xuelian fan bingbing, a woman from a small town in china who sues her exhusband on the grounds that their divorce was fake. An epic saga of spousal revenge and a razor sharp sendup of bureaucracy, major chinese filmmaker feng xiaogang back to 1942 delivers an unusual satire with a radical visual approach anchored by superstar actress fan bingbing. But with the release of i am not madame bovary, circumstances have worsened, said her brother, who was not identified by name.
The sarcasm of superstar director feng xiaogang reduces chinese bureaucracy, the legal system and government inefficiency to ashes in i am not. Madame bovary sues film i am not madame bovary china film. I am not madame bovary is about the label of madame bovary, essentially a title of shame youd accuse someone of being if you were perhaps misogynist the chinese title has a muchmore culturallyspecific title, i am not pan jinlian. Chinas star director feng xiaogangs circular film format opens up a completely new way of experiencing film with sublime images of breathtaking beauty.
As she doggedly fights a fake divorce from the provincial courts all the way to beijing, li manages to flummox every male government functionary in her path to justice. I am not madame bovary is feng xiaogang, liu zhenyun and fan bingbings second collaboration together, twelve years after their first, cell phone. Nov 18, 2016 director feng xiaogangs i am not madame bovary, with fan bingbing as the central character, is not a retelling of gustave flauberts vicious sendup of the french bourgeoisie. Madame bovary sues film i am not madame bovary china. There are a number of peculiar things about new chinese film i am not madame bovary. Despite running nearly twoandahalf hours, i am not madame bovary never really explains why all of the movies men there are very few female chinese politicians are terrified of lianafter all, shes been suing the government for 10 years, and nothing much seems to have come of it apart from the one initial mass termination. May 25, 2017 i am not madame bovary is a chinese film with dream imagery and a nightmare title. Xuelian is a fantastic character who may not be educated or wealthy, but is driven and passionate about finding justice for herself. Essentially if a woman was promiscuous or unfaithful shed be branded a madame bovary pan jinlian and. The flaubert invocation is a red herring served up for foreign markets.
I am not madame bovary s sly social commentary and wellconstructed story anchor director feng xiaogangs visually experimental approach. After being swindled by her exhusband, a woman takes on the chinese legal system. Judging from the subtitles, i am not madame bovary has nothing to do with flaubertsomeone just decided that character works as a westernlit equivalent of pan jinlian, the duplicitous protagonist of a renowned 17thcentury chinese novel. I am not madame bovary feng xiaogang, 2016 seattle screen. Li xiaomei, a judge in eastern chinas jiangsu province, criticized the protagonists decision to petition the government and appeal to officials rather than. Citing defamation, 60yearold pan jinlian from southern chinas guangdong province is suing the director of i am not madame bovary, a film known in chinese as i am not pan jinlian. Li xuelian fan doesnt take kindly to being compared to panbovary by her exhusband li zonghan. I am not madame bovary is fengs adaptation of liu zhenyuns 2012 novel i am not pan jinian. Nov 18, 2016 there are a number of peculiar things about new chinese film i am not madame bovary.
I am not madame bovary might be an easier sell to western audiences than some of fengs populist blockbusters e. I am not madame bovary palm springs international film. Still, its frequently beautiful, with feng constraining most. South korean erotic thriller the handmaiden wins big chinas i am not madame bovary won best film, with star fan bingbing picking up best actress. I am not madame bovary tells the somewhat convoluted story of the legal battles fought by a woman standing alone against a confederacy of male bureaucrats. I am not madame bovary le film i am not madame bovary. When qin remarries not to lian she confronts a local official about the ruse, but is turned away with the fake divorce upheld. With almost the entire film confined to a circular frame, with the action confined to less than half the screen, i am not madame bovary never seems to get started. Pans battle to clear her name is not the first time i am not madame bovary has come under fire. It was selected to be screened in the special presentations section at the 2016.
But the good work is undone by a lack of focus and a brave but counter. Its a testament to his increasing clout that feng has followed that up with i am not madame bovary, arguably his most adventurous film yet both aesthetically and politically. But overall, i am not madame bovary was a funny, charming, satirical, feminist tale that shows both director feng xiaogang and actress fan bingbing at their best. Country girl li xuelian, played by fan bingbing, fakes a divorce in order to. A comedy of bureaucracy like many a film of the romanian new wave, but rather than the drab and bleak institutional ironies of the eastern bloc, feng xiaogangs satire is bright and sprightly, bouncing along its tunnel visions for two and a half hours of contradiction made irresolvable by a societys fundamental lack of belief. Oct 07, 2016 i am not madame bovary is a visually striking film. Li xuelian and her husband qin yuhe stage a fake divorce to secure a second apartment in the city reserved by the government for single people. The film stars fan bingbing, zhang jiayi, yu hewei, dong chengpeng and guo tao. But instead, i am not madame bovary chooses to focus on the corruption and ineptitude of the chinese governments lowerlevel officials. I am not madame bovarys sly social commentary and wellconstructed story anchor director feng xiaogangs visually experimental approach. I am not madame bovary is built on a strong performance by fan bingbing and a caustic eye toward government bureaucracy. I am not madame bovary trailer festival 2016 youtube. That is the theme of feng xiaogangs cinematic parable, i am not madame bovary.
I am not madame bovary 2016 directed by feng xiaogang. Essentially if a woman was promiscuous or unfaithful shed be branded a madame bovary pan jinlian and socially ostracized. With chengpeng dong, bingbing fan, wei fan, xiaogang feng. I am not madame bovary tells the story of a woman fighting tirelessly for her rights. Flauberts 1856 novel madame bovary is about a woman in france who, bored with her marriage to a stolid doctor, embarks on three affairs, her head filled with misguided ideas of romance. The eponymous character lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life. The best evidence of this is a scene near the end where one character seriously intones that the rule of law will take care.