Night Train

Widow Wu Hongyan tries to manage her coldand lonely everyday life in western China. Sheworks with women awaiting execution and everynow and then it’s her turn to put a bullet in thehead of a convicted girl. Her life is devoid of love.On weekends, she takes the train to a big dancehall event without ever finding that special one.Until Li Jun captures her interest. But the lankyand silent young man hides a secret connectedto Hongyan’s work.The aesthetics of the movie are almosttransparent, offered to the viewer in a placidrhythm. When Hongyan stares out on the greyindustrial China from a bus, Yinan Diao uses thesqueaking of the bus, and the humble sigh as itturns, to give glimpses of her mind.Simple solutions, like close-ups of trainseats repaired with raw stitches, tell the harsh story. In front of the mirror in her lonely room,Hongyan pretends that she’s the stripper nextdoor. It’s not a merry way of living and that mightbe one of the reasons why China’s Film Bureaudidn’t approve of “Night Train” being shown atCannes.

Premiere Status
Nordic Premiere: Orig. title
Ye Che: Cast
Dan Liu, Dao Qi: Producer
Vivian Qu, Steve Chow: Script
Yinan Diao: Cinematography
Jinsong Dong: Music
Zi Wen: Spoken language
Mandarin