Let the Bullets Fly

Director Jiang Wen has killed several birds with one stone in making this Chinese hit movie. It has made millions at the box- office in the home country, been praised for its artistic qualities and eluded China’s strict censorship laws. We’re in a tiny village in the 1920s, a turbulent and lawless time in China. A newly appointed mayor is killed by a feared group of bandits on his way to his new job. Their leader Pocky decides to pose as the mayor and take his place in the village, but soon has his hands full taking care of all his new responsibilities. Surprisingly the tough bandit governs the village as a philanthropic Robin Hood, to the great dismay of the corrupt power elite.

Let the Bullets Fly is a political satire, full of humour and metaphors. Several critics and filmmakers have interpreted it as a hidden critique of the current Chinese government, while others see it as a comment to the rigid censorship filmmakers have to come to terms with. Either way, all of this is skillfully camouflaged as an adventure film set in a lawless time wilder than the wild, wild west. Here some of China’s finest actors, the director himself among them, really get to prove themselves in an action comedy full of crazy ideas and spectacular stunts. dgr