Winter Vacation
Across Asia • 1h 31m
Directed by Li Hongqi • Drama • With Lei Bao, Bai Junjie • 2010 • 91 minutes
In this acclaimed absurdist comedy, bored teenagers and disillusioned adults rage at each other and the emptiness of life in frost-bitten northern China.
It's the last day of winter vacation in Inner Mongolia. Four aimless adolescents enjoy their last hours of freedom drifting between the barren spaces of their small town. They make surreal visits to homes of family and friends, including an unhappy little boy who dreams of becoming an orphan to escape the tyranny of his family.
A prevailing absurdity casts over their lives as they endure petty instances of bullying while arguing over the purpose of school, teenage love, and life in general. Eventually they return to the routines of school life, only to witness an epic meltdown from their teacher in the midst of a lesson. Winner of the Golden Leopard for Best Film at the Locarno Film Festival, the third film by poet-novelist Li Hongqi announces him as a major figure in China's independent cinema.
"No other director can touch poet-novelist LI Hongqi."—Tony Rayns, BFI
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