Only the River Flows

2023 1h 42m ZH

😐

6.4

MID

★6.4TMDB · 122

ThrillerDramaCrime

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Dedicated police detective Ma Zhe is tasked with solving a series of brutal murders in a rural Chinese town. As pressure mounts from his superiors, a hasty arrest is made, but while his colleagues celebrate, several clues push Ma Zhe deeper into a desperate investigation of his own.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Zhu Yilong
Ma Zhe
Chloe Maayan
Bai Jie
Hou Tianlai
Chief of Police
Tong Linkai
Xie
Kang Chunlei
Madman
Wang Jianyu
Xu Liang
Moxi Zishi
Wang Hong
Liu Baisha
Qian Ling

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Wei Shujun
Writers: Wei Shujun, Kang Chunlei
Languages: Mandarin
Countries: China, Australia

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 6

ERA

Did you know

Released 3 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 6

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: China, Australia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 6

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Wei Shujun, shot by Zhiyuan Chengma. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 6

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Matthieu Laclau shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 6

RUNTIME

Did you know

Zhu Yilong and Chloe Maayan and Hou Tianlai carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 6

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt27590147 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Wei Shujun directs. Zhiyuan Chengma behind the camera. Matthieu Laclau cuts. Produced in China, Australia. Dialogue in Mandarin.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 3 years ago.
2International production across 2 countries: China, Australia.
3Directed by Wei Shujun, shot by Zhiyuan Chengma. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Editor Matthieu Laclau shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Zhu Yilong and Chloe Maayan and Hou Tianlai carry the top of the cast.
6IMDB entry: tt27590147 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Zhiyuan Chengma
Editing: Matthieu Laclau
Sound: Tu Duu-chih
Runtime: 102 min · 1h 42m
Status: Released
Box office: $42,686,993
Original language: ZH
IMDB: Only the River Flows (2023)

Also by

Wei Shujun

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Lachlan Thiele2023-05-28
★ 6/10
EXT. WHERE DOES THE RIVER STOP - DAY Only The River Flows is my first Wei Shujun film, and it is now someone I'd like to explore as I adored many elements of this film. First, it's shot on film 😍 which builds a beautiful atmosphere solidified through noir-style lightning and heavy smoking. I'm already on board any time a film noir style is present; Only The River Flows is solid throughout the first 80 minutes of the film, as it's fully engulfed in that crime noir storytelling. A cop hunts down a killer, and when an arrest is made, and the case can be shut, a thought of 'why' lingers on the officer's mind. The plot intrigued me as it flowed into a psychological thriller, sometimes reminding me of Twin Peaks, which is a tremendous compliment. However, there is a literal 'BANG' at the minute 80 mark, and the final 20 minutes start going all over the place. I love where the film went during the final moments, involving a 'Twin Peaks' style dream sequence. However, the last act's apparent lack of cohesiveness ultimately disappoints — pulling my review from a solid four stars into a three. FADE OUT.
CinemaSerf2024-03-06
★ 6/10
"Ma Zhe" (Zhu Yilong) engenders an almost adulatory degree of support from his team as he leads them on an investigation following the discovery of the body of the goose-rearing "Granny Four" on a remote riverside. Suspicion quickly falls on her adopted friend known simply as the "madman", but the detective is not so convinced that things are that straightforward. His ensuing task isn't helped by pressure from his ping-pong playing boss to conclude quickly and by the fact that he and his wife are expecting a baby - and that procedure is not going to be as simple as they might like. With the rain pretty much relentless throughout, he encounters some quirky local characters who seem to muddy the waters rather than offer him clarity. Clarity? Well that's an element to this story that is a bit too sparing at times. "Ma Zhe" finds his troubles gradually getting the better of him - yes, there are more bodies - and soon his own grasp on reality becomes distinctly compromised. Can he keep it together long enough to solve the crime? The film starts with the usual affirmation of the communist values of team play before entering the realms of predictable cop drama tempered with a bit of undercooked psycho-babble that Zhu Yilong tries to hard hold together. By the denouement, though, I felt way too much of the plot was contrived to try to tap into the psyche - of him and us - and it didn't really work. That said, he does well here and we do get quite a tense sense of his gradually becoming overwhelmed by the scenarios that test his usually linear style of working, thinking and living. Sadly, aside from "Ma Zhe", the characters are barely developed and director Wei Shujun seems more interested in focussing on an admittedly gritty and authentic looking peek at 1990s rural China, whilst rather abandoning the detail and characterisation of story to the sidelines as the dream sequences blur more and more the line between reality and fantasy. It does move along well enough, but I found it a bit of a meringue of a film - not much when you get into it.