critics consensus

People's Republic of Desire fascinates and repels in equal measure with a sadly illuminating look at the intersection between technology and our relationship with celebrity. Read critic reviews

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Movie Info

Three young characters -- a singer, a comedian and a migrant worker -- search for fame, fortune and human connection by livestreaming their talents online.

Genre:

documentary
Original Language:

Chinese
Director:

Hao Wu
Producer:

Hao Wu
Release Date (Theaters):

Nov 30, 2018 limited
Release Date (Streaming):

Dec 31, 2018
Runtime:

1h 35m

Cast & Crew

Hao Wu
Director

Jean Tsien
Executive Producer

Hao Wu
Producer

Hao Wu
Cinematographer

Hao Wu
Film Editor

Michael Tuller
Original Music

News & Interviews for People's Republic of Desire

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Critic Reviews for People's Republic of Desire

All Critics (33) | Top Critics (13) | Fresh (32) | Rotten (1)

In this thematic emphasis, Wu points to the hollowness of a lot of Internet culture-his subjects are bound by a desire to lose themselves in a fleeting sense of fame.

December 19, 2018 | Full Review…

Ben Sachs
Chicago Reader
It's all a little dizzying, and truly dispiriting. Wu unpacks a heady system and makes sense of it for newbies.

December 13, 2018 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Kimberley Jones
Austin Chronicle
Equally fascinating, sad and scary...

December 5, 2018 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…

David Lewis
San Francisco Chronicle
People's Republic of Desire is equal shares fascinating and depressing, often at the same time.

November 30, 2018 | Rating: 3.5/4 | Full Review…

Nick Allen
RogerEbert.com
The ability of "People's Republic of Desire" to show these familiar desires playing out in futuristic surroundings is invariably surprising and never less than compelling.

November 29, 2018 | Full Review…

Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
A chillingly sad document of where the human spirit is at, and where it may be going.

November 29, 2018 | Full Review…

James Greenberg
TheWrap
The ultimate experience of People's Republic of Desire is exhausting, eye-opening and slightly terrifying. I'll fully admit, I didn't really care what happened to these self-obsessed dopes, but that doesn't make their journey any less fascinating.

July 7, 2020 | Rating: 2.5/4 | Full Review…

Steven Prokopy
Third Coast Review
Wu edits their stories into clean, rags-to-riches-to-rags narratives, and doesn't have to do much when it comes to highlighting how strange the whole situation is

June 5, 2019 | Full Review…

C.J. Prince
The Cinessential
At a time when Americans are more concerned than ever that social media platforms such as Facebook are exerting too much influence over people's lives, this eye-opening film features China also grappling with the same issue.

March 25, 2019 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review…

Phil Guie
Film-Forward.com
...tellingly spry and insightful. Slickly produced, energetic and intrinsically revealing...an intriguing documentary about online entertainment in China.

February 27, 2019 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…

Frank Ochieng
The Critical Movie Critics
For the winners, like karaoke singer Shen Man, this can result in an income of $40,000 per month, some of it coming from displaced urban workers longing for connection in a world that's changing too fast.

December 26, 2018 | Rating: 7/10 | Full Review…

Sarah Boslaugh
TheArtsStl
It's surreal. While the director seems to be unable to land on a subject, the spectacular strangeness of the way people interact on YY is enough to earn viewers' attention.

December 19, 2018 | Full Review…

Chase Burns
The Stranger (Seattle, WA)