Global Lens 2011-2012 – Dooman River
Director: Zhang Lu
China | 2009 | 89 minutes
Korean and Mandarin, with subtitles in English
Writer-director Zhang Lu’s fascinating window into a rarely seen corner of rural China revolves around 12-year-old Chang-ho, living with his grandfather and mute sister along the frozen river-border with North Korea. Although fraught with unemployment and other tensions, his community seems sympathetic toward the Korean refugees fleeing famine and misery; Chang-ho even bonds over soccer with one young border-crosser who comes scavenging food for a sibling. But he soon turns on his new friend as suspicions mount against the illegal immigrants and his sister reels from unexpected aggression, provoking a quandary over his loyalties in an exquisitely detailed story of compassion and strife across an uneasy geopolitical border.
The Bates College Museum of Art presents GLOBAL LENS 2011-2012
Organized by the Global Film Initiative, the series draws from cinematic talent across the planet, with a focus on Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. Ten feature length films comprise the 2011 series.