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Black Coal, Thin Ice

2014 1h 46m Crime Drama Mystery & Thriller List
96% Tomatometer 26 Reviews 61% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Two former cops start investigating the series of murders that tanked their careers when the killings begin again.
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Black Coal, Thin Ice

Critics Reviews

View All (26) Critics Reviews
Tara Brady Irish Times Black Coal, Thin Ice twists and turns as it goes: even the jolting electronic music over the end credits springs another surprise. Rated: 4/5 Jun 13, 2015 Full Review David Ehrlich Little White Lies Maybe the angriest movie from mainland China since Li Yang's Blind Mountain. Rated: 5/5 Jun 5, 2015 Full Review Kate Muir Times (UK) What's fascinating is not merely the plot, but the wonderfully shot background, red and green neon on a grey townscape. Rated: 4/5 Jun 4, 2015 Full Review Dustin Chang Floating World Diao's China, the Beijing Olympics still 4 years away, is still very much provincial ("Who brought in a horse in my apartment?"), yet fast changing and cold-hearted. The film announces the arrival of another major auteur in Chinese cinema. Feb 21, 2021 Full Review Panos Kotzathanasis Asian Movie Pulse "Black Coal, Thin Ice" is a great art-house noir that thrives on both contextual and visual level, with the awards it received being utterly justified. Dec 20, 2020 Full Review Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com Bleak but superbly moody, Diao Yinan's Black Coal, Thin Ice is an exciting homage to classic American film noir from a completely unexpected source, and much more intelligent than the simplicity of its title indicates. Rated: 4/5 Oct 20, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (36) audience reviews
Liam D A well acted and written mystery is both engrossing and disturbing Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/20/22 Full Review richard i Feels deeply symbolic, though of what is probably part of its mystery, but ultimately as a detective story, pretty as it looks and darkly humorous as it is at times, it ends up rather dragging. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member This is a bit of a mixed bag. There is plenty to admire but for me it does not quite know how to end. Vivid portrayal of misogyny. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/16/23 Full Review Audience Member ???????????????Blu-ray??????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Joan P R Interesting portrayal of the hard life and ugly urban landscapes of a cold and grey province in China. As a detective story it can be painful to watch, with the police always slow and clumsy, or otherwise trigger-happy. The gender and sexual politics are not brilliant either, but perhaps this is the point - how awful it must be for a woman in China. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 05/20/17 Full Review Audience Member Well shot, but is too by-the-book for its own good. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Black Coal, Thin Ice

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis Two former cops start investigating the series of murders that tanked their careers when the killings begin again.
Director
Diao Yinan
Producer
Vivian Qu, Shen Yang
Screenwriter
Diao Yinan
Production Co
China Film, Boneyard Entertainment China, Omnijoi Media
Genre
Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
Chinese
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 28, 2015
Runtime
1h 46m
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