Black Coal, Thin Ice (Chinese: 白日焰火; pinyin: Báirì Yànhuǒ; lit. 'Daylight Fireworks') is a 2014 Chinese thriller film written and directed by Diao Yinan, and produced by Vivian Qu. The film won the Golden Bear award at the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.[2]
| Black Coal, Thin Ice | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Chinese | 白日焰火 |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Báirì Yànhuǒ |
| Directed by | Diao Yinan |
| Screenplay by | Diao Yinan |
| Produced by | Vivian Qu |
| Starring | Liao Fan Gwei Lun-mei Wang Xuebing |
Production company | Omnijoi Studios |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 106 mins |
| Country | China |
| Language | Mandarin |
| Box office | US$16.8 million[1] |
Plot edit
Wu Zhizhen, who looks cold and beautiful, exudes the charm of a mature woman, which is a fatal temptation for men, especially for Zhang Zili, a policeman who had met her once.
Five years ago, Wu Zhizhen's husband Liang Zhijun was determined by the police to have died in a bizarre dismemberment case. At that time, Zhang Zili solved the case and shot the murderer who resisted arrest with a gun. Five years later, a similar serial case occurred again, and these deceased people had been in love with Wu Zhizhen. Zhang Zili, who had not yet resolved his heart knot, took the initiative to approach Wu Zhizhen, but fell in love with this woman like a moth to a flame. The two people who suffered major setbacks in life gradually went from sympathizing with each other to falling in love. With closer contact, Zhang Zili discovered the truth of five years ago.
Cast edit
- Liao Fan as Zhang Zili
- Gwei Lun-mei as Wu Zhizhen
- Wang Xuebing as Liang Zhijun
- Wang Jingchun as Rong Rong
- Yu Ailei as captain Wang
- Ni Jingyang as Su Lijuan
Production edit
The project started from Diao Yinan's idea to film a detective story.[3][4] Diao spent eight years in total writing the screenplay;[5] the final version that was filmed was the third draft. The film was then laid out into a detective film noir.[6]
Liao Fan gained 44 pounds of weight to play the film's protagonist of an alcoholic and suspended police officer.[7]
Name edit
The film's English title Black Coal, Thin Ice is different from its Chinese title Bai Ri Yan Huo, which translates literally as Daylight Fireworks. Diao Yinan came across this phrase from a friend of his.[5] Diao further clarified the meaning of "daylight fireworks" as a state of sentiment or a state of condition. For him, the Chinese and English names together helped to construct the difference between reality and fantasy. In an interview he explained, "Coal and ice both belong to the realm of reality, but fireworks in daylight is something fantastic; they are the two sides of the same coin." The English name refers to the two visual clues in the film: coal as "where the body parts were found" and ice as "where the murder was committed".[8] He further explained, "when the two are combined, the reality of this murder is constructed ... while daytime fireworks is a fantasy, it is what we use to coat ourselves from the cruel side of this real world."
Reception edit
Box office edit
Black Coal, Thin Ice grossed US$16.8 million worldwide.[1]
Critical response edit
The film was shown in competition at the 64th Berlin International Film Festival,[9] won the Golden Bear prize for Diao.[2][10] The film's leading actor Liao Fan also won the Silver Bear for Best Actor.[11] The film received critical praise at the Berlin Film Festival, but audience reaction was more divided.[12][7]
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 96% based on 23 reviews, with an average rating of 7.82/10.[13] On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating to reviews, the film has a weighted average score 75 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[14]
References edit
- ^ a b "Black Coal, Thin Ice". Box Office Mojo. Amazon. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
- ^ a b "Chinese film wins Best Picture at Berlin film festival". BBC. 15 January 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
- ^ "重庆晚报数字报". Archived from the original on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2014-02-16.
- ^ "第64届柏林电影节主竞赛单元之亚洲力量-搜狐娱乐".
- ^ a b "《白日焰火》到底是啥？金熊奖影片大起底_娱乐_腾讯网".
- ^ "桂纶镁变"蛇蝎美人"_娱乐新闻·综合_新京报电子报".
- ^ a b "Asian glory as Berlin film fest wraps up". The Bangkok Post. 16 February 2014.
"Black Coal, Thin Ice" divided audiences in Berlin but won over many critics.
- ^ "Cinephilia迷影 | 【Berlinale 2014】对话刁亦男：活在他们自己的世界里（作者：Tony Rayns）". Archived from the original on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2014-02-16.
- ^ "Competition Jan 15, 2014: Berlinale 2014: Competition Complete". berlinale.de. 15 January 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
- ^ "Berlin Golden Bear Goes to China's 'Black Coal, Thin Ice,' Jury Prize to 'Grand Budapest Hotel'". Variety. 15 February 2014.
- ^ "Berlin: Chinese Film Noir 'Black Coal, Thin Ice' Wins Golden Bear". The Hollywood Reporter. 15 February 2014.
- ^ "China's 'Black Coal, Thin Ice' takes top prize at Berlin Film Festival". France 24. 16 February 2014. Archived from the original on 15 October 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
"Black Coal, Thin Ice" divided audiences in Berlin but won critical praise. It is Diao's third feature film.
- ^ "Bai rì yan huo (Black Coal, Thin Ice) (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
- ^ "Black Coal, Thin Ice Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
