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The 50 Best Chinese Language (China, Hong Kong, Tibet, Bhutan, Taiwan) Films of the Decade (2011-2020)

Shadow Zhang Yimou still from a fight

Considering the political issues that torment the whole Sinophone world, and the ways all these countries (even this term is under consideration) are connected and clashing at the same time, coming up with a title and which films to include in that list is at least as difficult as winnowing the films in the list.

Despite all the turmoil, however, films of utmost quality continue to come out from this region, if even the “Hollywood of the East” (aka Hong Kong) is definitely not in the place it used to be during the 90s, with the fact that Chinese “” and Taiwanese “” are shortlisted for the Oscar for Foreign Movie, highlighting the fact in the most eloquent fashion.

In an effort to select some of the best Sinophone movies of the decade (2011-2020), we came up with 50 we felt were the ones that truly stand out in terms of quality, impact and sheer entertainment they offered. The order of this list could be different of course and the number much bigger, but our effort was towards presenting great films and not cataloguing all of them, always with a focus on diversity in style, themes, origin, and filmmaker

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50. Rigor Mortis (Juno Mak, 2013, Hong Kong)

Rigor Mortis still

Rigor Mortis” is a well-balanced, modern update of both 80s Hong Kong and Japanese horror genre filled with interesting characters that you care about. didn’t use lots of blood or gore to tell his story or to shock the viewers; in fact, the slow pacing actually helps to bring out the movie’s spooky and gloomy atmosphere. There are lots of references to traditional Chinese mythology with a touch of Japanese horror, courtesy of a pair of long haired ghostly twins (David Chew).

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49. Godspeed (Chung Mong-hong, 2016, Taiwan)

Godspeed still

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48. (, 2018, China)

Girls Always Happy Yang Mingming

Wu and her mother are not girls any more and they are not always happy. Irony indeed abounds in “Girls Always Happy”, a debut feature written and directed by Yang Mingming. A sweet’n sour brain candy based on her own life, the film manages to be funny and uplifting in a refreshing and unconventional way, using sarcasm and a clever “matter-of-factness”. No wonder it’s collecting kudos and prizes during this early festival tour. (Adriana Rosati)

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47. Drug War (Johnnie To, 2012, Hong Kong)

Drug War Louis Koo

directs another action film about cops that act as criminals, and their opponents, and does a very good job on it. Most of the film functions as an agonizing thriller, as Zhang poises as a criminal in order to find out more about the syndicate and Choi is always on the lookout for a way out of the strain he is in. This last aspect, however, is presented is subtlety, since, although the fact that the scenario Zhang put in motion will not go smoothly until the end is quite obvious, Choi does not act on it, for the most part of the film. This trait benefits the most by Louis Koo acting as Choi, who manages to emit a constant sense of restlessness, as a man who acts in timid fashion, but is obvious that he is planning something. Some nonsensicality could not be missing from a To film, although this time is quite restrained, with the exception of the scene where Zhang is forced to take drugs. (Panos Kotzathanasis)

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46. So Long, My Son (Wang Xiaoshui, 2019, China)

So Long My Son still

Ambition, guilt and shame is something Wang deals with, while the wheel of history and politics stays always in the background. That is the principal reason for the non-linear structure which makes the film hard to follow in the beginning, while it pays off in the end, with a rare example of an earnest, non-sappy happy ending in the recent film history. […] In the end, the mathematics is pretty simple: the viewers who remain patient for the first hour of the film will be rewarded in the end with a subtle and detailed piece that shows Wang Xiaoshui is close to the top of his game. (Marko Stojiljković)

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45. The Cloud in Her Room (Zheng Lu Xinyuan, 2020, China)

The Cloud in Her room still

The quite original as much as impressive monochrome cinematography of DP Matthias Delvaux is actually the main aspect of the narrative, with everything that take place in front of the screen revolving around the imaging techniques. Negative reversals, unusual framing occasionally bordering on the documentary and occasionally on the surrealistic, and scenes where the white takes completely over the scene all come together in utter harmony to present a number of different sequences, both contextually and stylistically. In that fashion, the road trip segments give their place to sex scenes, to “interviews” , to singing scenes inside bars, to images of tunnels or construction sites or stairwells, all in an effort that seems to highlight how lost Muzi is, perpetually caught among people, locations and timeframes. (Panos Kotzathanasis)

44. The Crossing (Bai Xue, 2019, China)

The Crossing still

Combined with controlled pacing (kudos also to the editor Matthieu Laclau whose work we got to see on recent Jia Zhangke films from “” onward), “The Crossing” is a complex film that tackles a number of topics with surgical precision, while keeping its heart at the right place. (Marko Stojiljković)

43. Free and Easy (Geng Jun, 2016, China)

Free and Easy still

” is a truly different movie from a country which seems to produce many films that look much alike. At the same time, it offers a hilarious (although not of the “laughing out loud” kind) and very artistic view of the contemporary Chinese society. (Panos Kotzathanasis)

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42. Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait (Khyentse Norbu, 2016, Bhutan)

Hema Hema still

Exotic and intriguing “Hema Hema” means “Once upon a time” in native Dzongkha language and the English subtitle refers to the aforementioned limbo, the waiting room of rebirth. The director Khyentse Norbu is a relevant Buddhist personality and teacher and has written and directed a tale that, not surprisingly, is informed by his Buddhist faith. And so are most Bhutanese movies, where the unavoidable karmic price must always be paid at the end. However, “Hema Hema” flies above the plain morality fable and offers several metaphors and open questions, making it rich and multifaceted… “” is an intriguing work and despite being arcane in parts, especially for Buddhism novices, offers some interesting hints to ponder over. (Adriana Rosati)

41. Dear Ex (Chih Yen Hsu and Mag Hsu, 2018, Taiwan)

Dear Ex still

In the end, “” is a drama about loss, growing up and people’s weaknesses. It is a story about many serious issues handled with the right balance of comedy and sincerity supported by the good cast and a playful use of animated sequences. While its intention is rather transparent, quite often, “Dear Ex” undoubtedly has enough charm to stand out making it a very enjoyable movie. (Rouven Linnarz)

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About the author

Panos Kotzathanasis

Panagiotis (Panos) Kotzathanasis is a film critic and reviewer, specialized in Asian Cinema. He is the owner and administrator of Asian Movie Pulse, one of the biggest portals dealing with Asian cinema. He is a frequent writer in Hancinema, Taste of Cinema, and his texts can be found in a number of other publications including SIRP in Estonia, Film.sk in Slovakia, Asian Dialogue in the UK, Cinefil in Japan and Filmbuff in India.

Since 2019, he cooperates with Thessaloniki Cinematheque in Greece, curating various tributes to Asian cinema. He has participated, with video recordings and text, on a number of Asian movie releases, for Spectrum, Dekanalog and Error 4444. He has taken part as an expert on the Erasmus+ program, “Asian Cinema Education”, on the Asian Cinema Education International Journalism and Film Criticism Course.

Apart from a member of FIPRESCI and the Greek Cinema Critics Association, he is also a member of NETPAC, the Hellenic Film Academy and the Online Film Critics Association.

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