Kinamand (2005) Reviews

• A touching tale of two cultures

  scheller22005-03-20

  I saw the film today, and seldom have I been so touched by a movie. Not only I, but most of the cinema was going through the emotions of laughing and crying, as we were following the story of Keld and Ling. Being a Dane married to a Chinese woman myself, I could strongly relate to how the oriental mystique and beauty was affecting Keld's life so much. I have always been a great fan of Vivian Wu, and I think that her performance in this movie was great, even though it is a smaller part than for instance my all-time favorite "Pillow Book". Bjarne Henriksen who carries most of the film, gives a great performance, demonstrating what a truly great actor he is. One of my favorite moments in the film is a pan over the area where the main events take place. To me it displayed how fragile life is. It also matches beautifully with a similar pan later in the movie that I will not reveal. I personally think that Henrik Ruben Genz has created a masterpiece.

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• Charming romantic comedy

  misfoster2005-04-03

  I thoroughly enjoyed this heartening and humorous movie. It tales the story of a plumber Keld who is tired of life after his wife has left him. His journey back to life begins when he starts to frequent a Chinese take-away shop. The owner of the take-away shop Feng proposes Keld to marry his sister proforma to acquire a residence permit. An offer Keld accepts. Kinamand is an untraditional movie that successfully succeeds in capturing boxed emotions, cultural gaps, and the essence of life. I gave this movie 9/10, and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good laugh, and an uplifting experience.

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• Chinaman a very good first

  bo3larsen2005-04-02

  Somebody wrote in a film chat that Vivian Wu is the most beautiful woman in a Danish film ever. She surely is the most beautiful woman in this film, and once she figured on a list of some hundred most beautiful people in the world, though according to my Chinese friends she is not a beauty by Chinese standards. Her presence in this film however is unquestionably delightful. I ascribe this to the camera work, the way she is dressed up and, of course, her beauty. The way she dresses together with her cooking and decoration skills brings about a marvelous atmosphere enhanced further by the Deng Lijun songs from the early 80s like Yueliang daibiao wode xin and believe it or not Bjørn Tidemanns Lille Sommerfugl. It is not normal (realistic) to wear a qipao (traditional Chinese dress) every day or otherwise dress up for a party every day and the atmosphere is not realistic either. I guess Ling and the atmosphere around her should be seen as a symbol of the mystic and beautiful traditional Chinese culture on a trivial, gray, realistic, modern Copenhagen working class backdrop. Chinaman is clearly inspired by In the Mood for Love by Wong Karwai; a great choice for inspiration! This is seen in the mood created by slow pace takes of Ling's qipao swaying forth and back to her sensual body moves. In In the Mood for Love, which is also a film where love is implied rather than becoming fleshly, Maggie Cheung changes qipao about 50 times. In Chinaman the focus is on Ling's earrings on which, along with her hips and eyes, the camera lingers. Thereby we as well as Keld (Bjarne Henriksen) are seduced by female and Chinese mystery. I guess it is also for the good of mystery that the Chinese dialogs are not subtitled. It keeps the common Danish viewer just as uninformed as the Danish main character about what is going on. Chapter headings consisting of Chinese sentences for beginners relate by hint what we are going to see. Overall they seem stupid to me; an original idea that should have been killed, but then there is the mistake! There is a chapter heading that goes something like Will you marry me?, which is also written correctly in Chinese signs but the tape voice says "yi bi hao jiaoyi" - "a good deal". So this "mistake" made on purpose actually points out what the marriage between Keld and Ling is - business, which by the way is also what Keld calls all things he wants to avoid explaining to Ling. At one point in the film Keld's otherwise gentle temper blows and he delivers an outburst of angry complains that Ling can't speak Danish and other right-wing cliché attitudes. Anyway, Ling's reply in Chinese is much more to the point. She has been sweet and serving so when not appreciated she complains that he never does any house work and that her clothes are smelly from his smoking and that had it been her own house he would have had to smoke outside. Unfortunately he doesn't understand her words, but his next move is to learn to say sorry (duibuqi) which turns out to be important. Chinese culture is presented here as refined, superior, traditional and beautiful compared to the Danish plumper, his wife and their son. The film offers great respect to Chinese culture. Thanks! This is the first Chinese Danish film and it is a very good first! I have watched many Chinese Westerner films and I am sure Chinaman is one of the best. 8/10

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• combination

  urumqitao2007-02-10

  just watched it.what might i say?it is a good combination,both the film making and the film story.i just like it.sadness may teach people how to survive better,or then we may realize how shall we cherish the life.and the director did a good job to make it a bilingual film.and from there you can get to know how the Chinese are living in Denmark.the Grill's boss Feng,is holding both the old Chinese tradition and the compromising to the Danish culture.while the rest of the family is holding the stubborn attitude for old tradition.you can tell that when Lin doesn't want to make this "marrige".and the young Chiense son,is the reflection about the positive immigration attitude.i really hope people can try to watch and understand this film.then you may feel happier the coming day.best wishes.

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• A good story well told.

  robert-spottswood2007-04-21

  Being in the U.S.A., I kept expecting this lovely poignant film to crumble into gratuitous violence or some other cheap surprise. As it went on, keeping everyone's motives human and showing them coming to do the right things in relationships, it ended up resting at the top of my recommendation list (even above Antonia's Line). Besides the simple story and impressive character acting by everyone, the experience and skill apparent in the lighting, color choices and sequence of each scene, the interesting angles of every take, and the top drawer casting were all distractingly above the norm. I kept thinking, 'Wow!' Still not sure why this is in the comedy category. We were out of Kleenex by the end, and totally content. If the English subtitles were big enough to read, it would be perfect.

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