As the summer heat intensifies, it's the perfect time to indulge in a Chinese film that oozes strangeness from every pore. “Keep Cool” by Zhang Yimou is a hidden gem in the extensive and highly acclaimed career of the filmmaker, deserving much more attention.
Based on a novel by Shu Ping, the film made its debut at the 54th Venice International Film Festival. The plot revolves around a series of unfortunate events experienced by the stuttering bookseller Zhao Xiaoshuai, portrayed by Jiang Wen, possibly one of the most renowned faces in Chinese cinema. Zhao attempts to win back the heart of his ex-flame, An Hong (Qu Ying), chasing her on buses, bicycles, and through the crowds of a sweltering and chaotic Beijing. In the midst of his clumsy attempts to get closer to the ever-elusive woman, Zhao crosses paths with her current boyfriend Liu Delong, a shady nightclub owner. A brawl erupts between the two just steps away from Tiananmen Square, setting in motion an unexpected chain of interconnected consequences, progressively becoming more delirious.
The seemingly banal plot is brilliantly enhanced by its mise-en-scène, which is decidedly experimental and innovative for those accustomed to Zhang's stylistic rigor in historical epics. In fact, despite being his eighth feature film, “Keep Cool” has nothing to do with his previous works. The director, who even appears in a cameo role as a street vendor, chooses to capture the absurdity of this comedy through the use of a disturbing handheld camera. The shots repeatedly linger on close-ups of the actors, capturing their sweat and increasingly delirious expressions. Zhang's camera doesn't stop, on the contrary it moves frantically between the bars and streets of Beijing, without succeeding in keeping its cool. The visual style of the work alternates between bright and colorful moments and darker, neon-lit scenes, thereby illuminating the multifaceted personalities of its protagonists.
The most notable feature of “Keep Cool” is its disarming humor with a pop and urban flavor, perfectly situated at the crossroads between a China increasingly open to “Western” influences and a lingering decadence that can still be felt after decades of socio-political repression. The film transports the viewer into an increasingly surreal spiral of absurd events and dialogues, punctuated by classic Chinese KTV songs sung by characters who make appearances on the screen.
In conclusion, this highly successful experimental attempt is the perfect work for a light yet not trivial viewing, as well as an opportunity to observe Zhang Yimou from a different perspective.
