Shower

One of China's most distinctive new directors, Zhang Yang [guest at the last edition of Far East Film] has scored a breakthrough to western audiences with his second feature Shower, which Fortissimo Film Sales sold to a host of territories at the recent Toronto and San Sebastian Film Festivals, including a deal with Sony Classics for North America. Australia and New Zealand. It's an accomplished picture, a touching and not entirely sentimental look at a man struggling to come to terms with the traditions of his father's generation. Its allure lies in its colourful portrait of bath-houses and their central place in Chinese communities, a never-before-seen glimpse into daily life in the People's Republic which is refreshingly unpolitical. The film is the story of a man who has left his family in Beijing to star anew in the Shenzhen economic development region. Under the mistaken impression that his father has died, he returns to Beijing to the bath-house that his father runs with his mentally retarded brother. Once there, however, he falls under the spell of the place and faces up to the responsibilities of looking after his brother in the event of his father's death. A motley collection of bath-house regulars add humour to the drama including a would-be opera singer who can only sing under the shower and a man nagged by his wife.