Movie Collection
Cinema is a dream we dream together. Here are the films that visually and narratively inspired me.
山河故人 (Mountains May Depart)
DIR. 贾樟柯 (2015) | ★ Favorite
❝ 过去，现在，未来，每个人都只能陪你走一段路，迟早是要分开的。
In Mountains May Depart, the 'future' was set in 2025. Standing here in 2026, looking back, we realize that while some gadgets from the film never appeared, the explosion of AI has rewritten our reality in ways even the director couldn't foresee.
But technology is just the backdrop. The core of the film—estrangement and separation—hit me hard, especially after my recent heartbreak. Rewatching it at the 10th-anniversary screening felt entirely different from the first time; the sorrow felt heavier, more real.
The song 'Go West' rings out like a prophecy, symbolizing a hunger for a better life. Now, I find myself facing my own dilemma: whether to leave everything behind and study abroad. So, 'Go West'?
大象席地而坐 (An Elephant Sitting Still)
DIR. 胡波 (2018) | ★ Favorite
❝ 一头大象，每天坐在动物园里，它他妈就一直坐那。
你真不想去看看。
I encountered this film during my senior high years—a period that is, for many Chinese students, a bleak and suffocating endurance test. This film became my sanctuary, rescuing me from that gray reality.
It is heartbreaking to know that the director, Hu Bo, ended his life shortly after its completion. The post-rock score is hauntingly beautiful, possessing the power to pierce through your heart. I still tear up whenever I hear the film's dialogue sampled in songs.
Since then, I have always dreamed of being that elephant—sitting still, doing nothing. It feels like a new way to resist the absurdity of life.
重庆森林 (Chungking Express)
DIR. 王家卫 (1994) | ★ Favorite
❝ 如果爱有保质期
我希望它是一万年
I watched this film last year, right before a serendipitous encounter changed my life. I was deeply moved by Wong Kar-wai's signature aesthetics and storytelling. He masterfully portrays the solitude hidden within a crowded metropolis. As a freshman stepping into a new world, the film became an echo of my own thirst for genuine connection.
Interstellar (星际穿越)
DIR. CHRISTOPHER NOLAN (2014)
❝ Love is the one thing we're capable of perceiving that transcends dimensions of time and space.
As a mechanics student, I appreciate the hard sci-fi elements—the accurate depiction of the black hole (Gargantua). But ultimately, it's a story about love and gravity. Zimmer's organ score is absolutely monumental. And just like the poem quoted in the film, it reminds us that "Do not go gentle into that good night."
路边野餐 (Kaili Blues)
DIR. 毕赣 (2016) | ★ Favorite
❝ 当我的光曝在你身上
重逢就是一间暗室
A poetic, dreamlike experience. Bi Gan is a master of atmosphere. The long take in the second half is mesmerizing, blurring the lines between reality and memory. The film's exploration of time and space resonates deeply with me.