Wan Qian

In 16th century China, maverick Commander Yu leads a small army against hordes of Japanese pirates who invade the coastline and take over Cengang.

After winning the Berlinale Golden Bear with Black Coal, Thin Ice, Diao Yinan returns with a hyper-stylised noir set in modern China’s underbelly. Twisting the conventions of the genre, this impressively crafted choreography of violence, moral decay and neon colours is striking, intoxicating cinema.