A cop, his dying wife, and the ghost of his cruelty trapped in swirling sand.
For twelve days and nights, He Tian Ying and his wife have been trapped in their home during a massive sandstorm covering a large area of China. His wife is running out of life-sustaining medicine, their young daughter is missing in the storm, electricity and phone communication have been cut off, and their food and water are running out. As He Tianying cares for his dying wife, in this isolation and confinement, his conscience starts to emerge. As a policeman, he has been involved in the vicious persecution of common Chinese citizens who follow the spiritual practice of Falun Gong. In a series of flashbacks, he painfully recalls one particular Falun Gong practitioner whom he had been attempting to force to renounce her beliefs.
Acting
Rong Tian's physical collapse mirrors moral awakening—devastating restraint.
Direction
Mahonen turns weather into metaphor; the storm never feels fake.
Director
Michael Mahonen
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Shot in 2004, this was one of the first dramatic films to explicitly depict the Chinese government's persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, making it effectively banned in mainland China.
The sandstorm sequences were achieved with practical effects and fans rather than digital—Mahonen wanted actors to actually struggle to breathe and see.
CA
