The Shadowless Tower
An unlikely friendship unfolds between Gu Wentong, a middle-aged man, and the young photographer Ouyang Wenhui in this humorous and lovely drama about human connections and relations.
Gu Wentong is a middle-aged, divorced food critic. His daughter, who he barely visits, lives with his sister and her husband. Through work he meets Ouyang Wenhui, an outspoken, far younger photographer, who he soon enters a relationship with. One day, Wentong is informed of where his father, who he has not seen since he was a child, lives, and with Wenhui by his side he attempts to reconnect.
The Shadowless Tower is a quiet, thoughtful film that takes its time to unravel its characters and their conflicts, leaving many small, poignant moments to stand on their own. After its world premiere at Berlin Film Festival the film has received several awards, including the ones for Best Film and Best Photo at Silk Road International Film Festival.
«A perfectly paced and intricately structured film, The Shadowless Tower pulls off the intoxicating trick of making the world feel smaller and more intimate than it first appears.»
– Patrick Gamble, Little White Lies –
Jenny Lund
Director
Lu Zhang (b. 1962) is a Chinese director, writer and producer who used to work as a novelist and literature professor. After his first filmmaking effort, the short film Eleven (2011), was selected for the Venice International Film Festival, he took up the profession full-time.
This film is part of
Original title 白塔之光 (Ba ta zhi guang)
Country China
Year 2023
Director Lu Zhang
Screenplay Lu Zhang
Cinematography Songri Piao
Producer Xu Jiahan, Zhang Jian, Peng Jin, Lu Sheng, Huang Yue
Cast Bai Qing Xin, Yao Huang, Zhuangzhuang Tian, Gaowa Siqin, Hongwei Wang, Qinqin Li, Yiwen Wang
Runtime 2h 24m
Language Mandarin
Subtitles English
Genre Drama
Format DCP
Age limit 12
Links IMDb
This film is in competition for the Audience Award.