Zhao Wei's directorial debut, and all I can say is, this was definitely made for a niche audience. To get the true feeling of nostalgia that this film portrays, you have to be a 70s or early 80s baby who grew up in China. That being said, a lot of IMDb-ers are not Chinese, considering this website was blocked from Chinese internet until very recently.
Personally, I thought this movie was good. I am Chinese-American and grew up in California, born in the late 80s, and with that background, I can feel empathetic towards many of the situations in this movie. However, I still feel like an outsider, and the feelings of nostalgia become lost on me, because frankly I've never been through the stuff the movie characters have. I went through the American education system. College consisted of drinking, smoking weed, frat parties, raves, and the occasional library session. Chinese universities are just so vastly different, you can probably imagine what it must be like for them, but that's it, you can only imagine.
Overall, this movie was well-made, and while some of the acting was stiff by Hollywood standards, it didn't really get in the way of the story. I was able to somewhat relate to this movie because of my culture, but for many foreign movie-goers, the (Chinese) pop-culture references will fly right over their heads. Watch at your own risk.
Personally, I thought this movie was good. I am Chinese-American and grew up in California, born in the late 80s, and with that background, I can feel empathetic towards many of the situations in this movie. However, I still feel like an outsider, and the feelings of nostalgia become lost on me, because frankly I've never been through the stuff the movie characters have. I went through the American education system. College consisted of drinking, smoking weed, frat parties, raves, and the occasional library session. Chinese universities are just so vastly different, you can probably imagine what it must be like for them, but that's it, you can only imagine.
Overall, this movie was well-made, and while some of the acting was stiff by Hollywood standards, it didn't really get in the way of the story. I was able to somewhat relate to this movie because of my culture, but for many foreign movie-goers, the (Chinese) pop-culture references will fly right over their heads. Watch at your own risk.