| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2010 12:32 pm |
||||||||||
 |
||||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
Entertainment 
|
|||||||||
'24 City' explores relic of Cold War China In his film "Still Life," which played last year, director Jia Zhang-ke looked at the serious (yet sometimes almost dreamlike) effects of the displacement that resulted from the damming of the Yangtze River for China's Three Gorges project.In a new film, "24 City," Jia is once again pondering displacement, but not because of a rising river. The city of Chengdu is a major Chinese metropolis, but for years it contained a city-within-the-city: Factory 420, a huge state-owned aeronautics and munitions plant. Now the old factory is being replaced by a new planned housing development. In a handy way, the change demonstrates the gradual shift from China's monolithic communist society to the more market-driven world there today. Jia's approach to this situation is not at all conventional. In the first part of the film, he shows us views of the once-secret Factory 420, which does piecemeal work, in contrast to its heyday cranking out jet bombers for service in the Vietnam War. Mostly Jia concentrates on interviews with people involved in the factory, including one woman who tells a harrowing story about being separated from her child while en route to a job at 420 (many of the workers there were imported from other parts of China, adding to the factory's atmosphere of a city unto itself). Other subsequent interviews are staged, with actors including Joan Chen. Why this tactic? Is Jia introducing fictional elements to reflect on the way that Factory 420 itself was a kind of spy-movie operation, a secret society within the narrative of the Cold War? He doesn't say, although the rusting fighter planes sit outside the factory, like relics from a movie set. In the otherwise naturalistic setting of "Still Life," Jia included a spaceship lifting off, so this kind of gesture fits his approach. "24 City" A documentary, but with some dramatized monologues, about a former secret Cold War munitions plant -- a city unto itself -- in the city of Chengdu. Jia Zhang-ke's film fills in this piece of Cold War history by listening to the testimonies of the now-displaced former workers. (In Mandarin, with English subtitles.) Rated: Not rated; probably PG for subject matter Showing: Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave., Seattle |
- A revolutionary 747
- Fire breaks out at Everett car dealer
- Everett rethinks boutique wineries
- A tidy lawn could be law in Lynnwood
- Snohomish County's bargain housing won't last
- Boeing's 747-8 takes off after weather delay
- Plan for I-5 closures this week
- A new bowling alley for Monroe?
- Lake Stevens man homeless after fire
- I-5 bridge joint may give you a jolt, but it isn't damaged
- A tidy lawn could be law in Lynnwood
(10) - Vote on school levies by Tuesday (9)
- Everett police officers cleared in 2008 shooting death (5)
- 1949 travel aid shows how few places blacks were welcome in Washington (4)
- I-5 bridge joint may give you a jolt, but it isn't damaged (4)
- Everett rethinks boutique wineries (4)
- Three politicians who want Gregoire's job in 2012 (3)
- Toyota has powerful D.C. friends (3)
- Snohomish County's bargain housing won't last (3)
- Life story: Man fought depression courageously, family says (3)
- Edmonds educator, famous announcer dies
- Mill Creek to appeal ruling on annexation
- Through the air, with the greatest of ease
- E-W thriving under new coach
- The path to citizenship
- EUUC puts on ‘Pants & Shoes’
- Wolfpack wins the ‘Battle'
- Lynnwood’s annexation plans OK’d
- Arlington's Cascade Valley Hospital celebrates expansion, national award and 100 years of service
- Business Licences Feb. 2010
- Technology tips for launching your own business
- Business Events Feb. 2010
- Tech Talk: No excuse today for going without a Web site
- State already raising fees and rates that restrict business growth
- Some legislators again targeting people’s initiative petition rights
|
 
|
|
|
|
| TODAY'S TOP JOBS |
| View All Top Jobs |
| Top Cars |
|
| Top Homes |
|
|
ADVERTISEMENT |
|
|
|Contact Us
|Advertiser Services
|Home Delivery
|Newsstand Locations
|Classifieds
|Feedback
|About the Company
|Work@the Herald
|Site Map |
|
COMMENTS | Be the first to comment
Log in or register to post a new comment.
To read other terms and conditions, click here