Only the River Flows
Chief police investigates a series of murders in a riverside town in rural China in the 1990s. An arrest is made quickly, clues push the policeman to dive deeper into the hidden behaviour of the locals.
Directed by
Wei Shujun
Written by
Kang Chunlei, Wei Shujun
Studio
Hangzhou Dangdang Film
Genre
Crime, Drama, Mistério, Thriller
Video
1080p
Audio
Chinese (EAC3 5.1)
Subtitles
English
Cast
Zhu Yilong
Ma Zhe
Chloe Maayan
Bai Jie
Hou Tianlai
Chief of Police
Tong Linkai
Xie
Zeng Qi
Xiao Ting
Wang Jianyu
Xu Liang
Liu Baisha
Qian Ling
Zhou You
Chubu Huajie
Chunlin Mo
Reviews
Ben Rolph
Wei Shujun's latest is a mysterious and engrossing neo-noir that marks a great return to the subgenre for Chinese cinema.
Michael Sicinski
It's no secret that Chinese cinema has suffered artistically under Xi Jinping's regime, even as it has reaped truckloads of money. Only the River Flows provides a very welcome sign of life.
Panos Kotzathanasis
Although "Only the River Flows" emerges as excessively artistic on occasion the artfulness that is evident in every frame and the charisma of the protagonists definitely make it a movie worth watching
Jordan Mintzer
Like the investigation itself, the meaning of Only the River Flows gradually finds its focus as the story progresses, leaving the viewer staring into the same abyss the detective does -- an abyss that, as in any respectable film noir, stares back at him.
Siddhant Adlakha
It's an ode not just to a particular style of cinema, but to the idea of cinema itself, as a form of storytelling that completes a cultural and personal picture.
Avi Offer
A slow-burning, atmospheric and provocative crime thriller.
Steven Nguyen Scaife
The craft brought to bear on Only the River Flows is captivating, but when it comes to matters of story, it cultivates a frustrating air of disinterest.
Gabrielle Marceau
Shujun has built a compelling, evocative mystery that maintains its enigmatic, unfinished feeling even after the higher-ups have closed the case and patted themselves on the back.
Andy Crump
[This crime thriller is] a gradual breakdown, complemented by Chengma Zhiyuan's thoughtful and measured cinematography.
Ben Kenigsberg
Wei's film increasingly blurs the line between the real and the imagined. The filmmaker has a gift for disorientation that partly compensates for the muddiness of the plot.
Zachary Barnes
As "Only the River Flows" follows its winding course, the movie seems to lose its grip not merely on the mystery but on its protagonist, becoming less psychologically penetrating and more haphazardly hallucinatory.
Kathy Fennessy
The film's credited actors all leave their mark, but it lives and dies by its lead, and Yilong Zhu gives a star-making performance. Until recently best known as a TV performer, he has started to make waves in China for his movie appearances.
M.N. Miller
Yilong Zhu carries Only the River Flows because of a brooding performance full of thoughtful introspection.
Alex Nguyen
Only the River Flows enriches what could have been a run-of-the-mill neo-noir with pitch-black humor and a disregard for linear narrative and concrete resolution.
Paul Emmanuel Enicola
The film's plot becomes a little muddy at times, exacerbated by a runtime that frankly could have used some reduction to make for leaner pacing.
Diane Carson
Wei Shujun's murder mystery "Only the River Flows" upends the familiar investigation plot, for his Chief of the Criminal Police Ma Zhe will follow one frustrating lead after another.
Mark Kermode
It was really atmospheric, melancholic, and visually arresting...
William Stottor
Only the River Flows is a compelling film moulded in the stylish trappings of classic noirs, but its lacking screenplay tells a frustratingly empty story.