The title of the film, East 22nd Street, did actually existed in China. In fact, it existed for several hundred of years in the imperial capital, Peking (Beijing), in the eastern part of the city. After the revolution, the name was changed, and eventually, during the rapid economic development in the 1990's, the place was finally wiped out in the rapid urban development, and construction workers hired to do the job was the migrant workers from rural area, like the protagonist. The rapid change of the urban environment in real life is an echo of the rapid change of life faced by these workers.
2 Reviews
Great start for talented director
BestFilms10 September 2006
I was looking at this site and remember seeing this film at special showing in Beijing few years ago. It was made while the director was studying at Beijing Film Academy. Though this short is not perfect in all ways (sound is not perfectly sync'd in some places), overall I rated it high because of quality of story and direction of actors. (This short was nominated for awards at several film festivals, and won at student festival in U.S.) Of course, Director Eng's next short, "Bus 44" got big notice all over the world, including several famous festivals (Venice and Sundance)! His recent feature movie "Waiting Alone" came out in China in 2005 and is terrific! I'm happy to say I have followed this director's career from the beginning, and I hope to see much more from him in future years.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews