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Lilting

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Lilting

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Summary

Drama starring Ben Whishaw and Cheng Pei Pei. Richard is a young man visiting Junn, a Chinese woman in a care home who has just lost her son. As Junn learns that Richard is more than just a pal of her dead son, the pair begin a tentative friendship.

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Review

A star rating of 3 out of 5.

Sophie Ivan

A gentle, lyrical drama from British-based writer/director Hong Khaou, Lilting traces the impact of a young man's sudden death on his partner (Ben Whishaw) and widowed mother (famed Chinese actress Cheng Pei Pei). In an attempt to pick up the pieces, the hollow-eyed and fragile Whishaw begins visiting the reserved Cheng, his closest living link with his dead lover, at her care home - though matters are somewhat complicated by the fact that Cheng has no idea her son was gay, and can barely speak a word of English. Even with the help of an interpreter, feelings and best intentions get lost in translation, sometimes giving way to laughter, sometimes tears, with varying degrees of success. Occupying a realm somewhere between life and death, between memory and reality, Khaou's beautifully shot film is so ethereal in tone it occasionally risks evaporating altogether, though it is an undeniably heartfelt exploration of loss.

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7.2/10

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Credits

Cast

rolenameRichardBen WhishawJunnCheng Pei Pei KaiAndrew LeungMargaretMorven ChristieVannNaomi ChristieAlanPeter Bowles

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Crew

rolenameDirectorHong Khaou

Details

Theatrical distributor

Artificial Eye

Released on

2014-08-08

Languages

English | Chinese

Guidance

Swearing.

Available on

DVD and Blu-ray

Formats

Colour

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