Unknown Pleasures (2002)
Average Rating: 6.6/10
Reviews Counted: 27
Fresh: 17 | Rotten: 10
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 6.4/10
Critic Reviews: 8
Fresh: 6 | Rotten: 2
No consensus yet.
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Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 1,328
My Rating
Movie Info
Unknown Pleasures takes place in China, in the small city of Datong, in 2001, where disaffected teenagers look for any kind of excitement to enliven their dreary existence. Bin Bin (Zhao Wei Wei) dates a quiet student, Yuan Yuan (Zhou Qing Feng) who's thinking of going to university in Beijing. They spend their time together holding hands, watching karaoke and Monkey King videos, and despairing for the future. Bin Bin envies the Monkey King his freedom. Bin Bin has quit his job at a local
Cast
-
Tao Zhao
Qiao Qiao -
Wei Wei Zhao
Bin Bin -
Qiong Wu
Xiao Ji -
Qing Feng Zhou
Yuan Yuan -
Wang Hong Wei
Xiao Wu -
Bai Ru
Bin Bin's Mother -
Liu Xi An
Xiao ji's Father -
-
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All Critics (30) | Top Critics (8) | Fresh (18) | Rotten (11) | DVD (7)
Jia creates some poignant images to convey key transitions in the characters' lives.
[Director Zhang-ke] Jia's virtuoso long takes, choreographed mise en scene, and feeling for character and behavior place him in a class by himself.
Lays bare the tao of contemporary China, like a doctor taking a pulse.
Top CriticToo much is left unsaid.
A stunning study of ennui.
May be Jia's most concentrated evocation of contemporary China's spiritual malaise.
A steady look at youth's restlessness, here filtered through the ugly immediacy of day-to-day life in China.
One of the better films of the 21st century.
If you don't buy this DVD for the lousy video transfer, at least buy it for the critics quoted on the cover (wink, wink).
The film just sits there, staring back at us.
Jia Zhang Ke delivers what may well be his finest work to date.
In its effort to evoke pity, Unknown Pleasures chiefly evokes agitation and frustration.
despite the distinct lack of good times and belly laughs, Unknown Pleasures is a great film.
Despite the fact that there's little dramatic arc, little dialogue and little joy in the lives of its characters, Unknown Pleasures is riveting.
[Music] has the ability to connect with everyone, and perhaps international audiences will connect with the Chinese youth of Unknown Pleasures for the exact same reason.
Hard to turn away from, but also damn hard to sit through ... there is a difference between inspiring a sense of alienation in one's audience, and merely alienating them
This sequel to Jia's excellent 1997 drama Xiao Wu is less original and absorbing than its predecessor, and less visually impressive than Platform.
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Foreign Titles
- Unknown Pleasures (Ren xiao yao) (DE)
- Unknown Pleasures (Ren xiao yao) (UK)
