Happy Times

A provocative, touching, surprising and obliquely illuminating piece.""""
-Susan Stark, Detroit News
Simultaneously poignant, engagingly funny and bittersweet, it mixes its elements in a way that is completely its own.""""
-Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
Wise, gentle and sad.""""
-A.O Scott, New York Times

Synopsis

Zhao is a poor, aging bachelor who hasn’t had luck in love. Thinking he has finally met the woman of his dreams, he leads her to believe he is wealthy and agrees to a wedding far beyond his means. While dining with his intended spouse, Zhao is introduced to her spoiled son and blind stepdaughter Wu Ying. The stepmother sees Wu as nothing but a burden to her and her son since she and her father divorced. Sad and lonely, Wu is interested in only one thing: the prospect of her father coming to take her to Shenzhen so she can have an operation to fix her eyes. As the film reaches its poignant conclusion, both Zhao and Wu’s actions demonstrate the strong bond that has developed between them.

Original Languages: Chinese (Mandarin)
Genre: Comedy, Drama, World Cinema
Running Time: 106 min.
Year: 2000

CREDITS

CAST
Benshan Zhao
Jie Dong
Lifan Dong
DIRECTED BY
Yimou Zhang

PHOTOS