THE WILD GOOSE LAKE - MIFF 2019

When a turf war erupts within a gang of motorcycle thieves, the ensuing battles end with a policeman accidentally shot and killed. After losing one of their own, the cops have had enough and issue a 300,000 yuan reward for anyone who brings in Zenong Zhou, the perpetrator of the cop killing. Knowing he has no chance of escape, Zhou hides out at Wild Goose Lake, with the help of Shujun Yang, one of the lakes “bathing beauties” (a prostitute who perform their tasks on the water), until he can organise his estranged wife the opportunity to bring him in, to collect the hefty reward. However being worth so much money, Zhou becomes a target from enemies and friends alike, all looking to take advantage of the cash bounty on offer. What chance does Zhou have to survive when he is thrust into a world where he knows he can trust nobody?

So goes the story of Chinese director Diao Yi'nan's latest film: a thrilling, energetic and super cool neo-noir tale. “The Wild Goose Lake” turned out to be a fantastic surprise. Whilst I had seen and enjoyed his previous 2014 effort, “Black Coal, Thin Ice”, it didn't thrill me enough to pay attention to what Diao Yi'nan was making next. When I first heard about this new film, I was certainly intrigued, but I must say that there is a certain stiffness to Mainland Chinese films, even when they delve into genre films and tackle cool crime stories. I felt I knew exactly what I was about to walk into; an expertly made crime drama, but one that was stiff or boring in terms of style and content. I could not have been more wrong.

“The Wild Goose Lake” bursts with energy and as I said at the beginning of this review, it is so damn cool! I was entranced right from the opening, superbly choreographed shot, that takes place at a rain drenched train station, and introduces us to our two main characters. Like a lot of great noir, the story then begins in flashback with both Zenong Zhou and Shujun Yang explaining the events that led them to be where they are right now. Once we, the audience, are caught up on the story that has already taken place, the narrative then moves on in the present as Zenong Zhou must decide to trust Shujun Yang, a woman he does not know, to get him to Wild Goose Lake undetected by the authorities, so he can hide out until his wife is located. From here on, we are thrust deep into the dark and dangerous Chinese underworld, as all the familiar tropes of noir are laid out. From the unfortunate man stuck in the middle of a predicament he cannot control, the femme fatale, the double crossings, to the atmosphere of complete doom and hopelessness, “The Wild Goose Lake” has it all.

Where this film excels most though is in its stunning visuals; this thing is just a feast for the eyes, as Diao Yi'nan takes every opportunity possible to impress with his flamboyant visual styling. The world he has created is hyper-stylised bursting with colour, and Yi'nan uses every visual trick to maximise the impact of this dark crime story. His use of colour, wall shadows, the rain, and the reflections and refraction of light caused by the rain, collectively do an excellent job of building a world full of danger, suspense and intrigue. But the thing that I loved the most about the look of “The Wild Goose Lake” was the use of all the neon and fluorescent lights. There is something so visually exciting about a dark world accentuated by bursts of neon; it is just so cool (I know that is pretty shallow, but it impressed me that much that I'm gloating like a fanboy). The image of motorbikes speeding down streets as rain pelts down from above, lit by the neon covering the base of these vehicles, is something that that I will take away from this film and never forget. Another amusing moment in the film involving neon that I loved, was a scene of an outdoor dance thing where members of the public just join in for a communal dance. A large number of these dancers have shoes that light up as they move, but what is so funny about the scene is that it is the location of a stakeout being carried out by the police, and it is all of the policemen wearing those shoes. The comedy comes when these cops suddenly have to chase down a suspect in the streets whilst still wearing these shoes; it is one of the few moments of levity in this dark thriller of a film.

Aside from the visual style, I thought that director Diao Yi'nan did a great job of pacing his film and keeping the story's momentum moving, especially in the first half of the film. I will admit that towards the end, the story does briefly lose focus and some elements are a little confusing, particularly the scene set at the zoo. Still this is only a minor hiccup in this strong crime offering.

While I was impressed by both of the female performances in “The Wild Goose Lake”, I must say that I was disappointed in Ge Hu's lifeless portrayal of Zenong Zhou. He lacks energy which is very noticeable in a film that is packed full of it. I understand that his character is in a hopeless situation and thus justifies why he looks so sullen all the time, but he is also in the fight for his life, but forever looks like all he wants to do is take a nap.

While I would not necessarily call “The Wild Goose Lake” a violent film, it does have two fantastic scenes of stylised action within it and one of these scenes does end in quite a bloody fashion. Both scenes are very well choreographed, in terms of camerawork and action, but it is the second one that is punctuated with a visceral spray of blood, that will stick out in the memory of viewers long after the film is done. This scene will also change the way you look at umbrellas forever too.

Overall, “The Wild Goose Lake” was a fantastic surprise. Being a huge fan of film noir, I responded mightily to this Chinese update of the genre. It is hyper stylised packed with visual panache. While the story does lose a little focus towards the end, for the most part this is an exciting look at a dark world full of betrayal, double crossings and violence. I recommend the film wholeheartedly and look forward to been able to watch it again soon.

3.5 Stars.