Chinaman

After 25 years of marriage, plumber Keld’s wife decides to leave him as she’s fed up with the lethargy of his body and soul. The tight-lipped man suddenly finds himself faced with a difficult task — to overcome the apathy that has thoroughly taken over his deserted apartment. Chance leads him to a Chinese bistro where he gets to know the owner, Feng, and his extensive family. A few weeks later, his new friend Feng asks Keld to perform a service for which he will receive fitting financial compensation: marry Feng’s younger sister and thereby allow her to remain in Denmark. Today, the word ‘melodrama’ sounds rather old-fashioned, but Henrik Ruben Genz’s second feature proves that the genre can be successfully employed without resorting to soul-wrenching histrionics. The narration’s subtle and suggestive execution is aided by the taciturn intensity of the main stars’ performances. Keld’s disarming emotional ineptness is in quiet harmony with the charming frailty of the Chinese woman, played by Vivian Wu, star of Greenaway’s The Pillow Book. (source: Catalogue 40th Karlovy Vary IFF)