Today, April 2, in 2001, Qiao walks through a crowded club before heading to the back to watch her boyfriend, mob boss Bin, play mahjong with other gangsters (Ash is Purest White, 2018)

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An epic melodrama spanning 17 years, #JiaZhangke's new film, #AshisPurestWhite, harkens back to the Chinese auteur's earlier films. I say this not just because it mostly takes place in Shangxi province (the director's home province where he made 3 of his early films), but also because he abandons the episodic/omnibus storytelling of Touch of Sin and Mountains May Depart, two of his last films. Instead, he concentrates on a long and arduous relationship between Qiao and Bin. Ash is a full-on (un)sentimental melodrama in epic scale. It's perhaps Jia's most down to earth, character study work. The long stretch in the middle gains more poignancy as the film goes along and afterwords. Some people reinvent themselves along with the changing times and some people don't. Some things in them though, remain the same. Jia expertly juxtaposes these conundrums, reflecting the soul of a changing nation. Ash is the Purest White is a deep, poignant masterpiece from a seasoned filmmaker. #chinesecinema