Li and the Poet

2011

1h 32m

Drama

List

95%

19 Reviews

Tomatometer

79%

100+ Ratings

Audience Score

A Chinese barmaid (Tao Zhao) and a Slavic fisherman (Rade Serbedzija) find friendship and more in an Italian fishing village.

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Audience Member

Nice, but a little bit boring.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A slim short story of loyalty and loneliness which elegantly turns the Venice lagoon into a world of toil and survival.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Nice performances and strong first half, but the end is flat and somewhat predictable.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

Full Review

Audience Member

With audience descriptions ranging from "natural" to "exquisite," this film focuses on the tradition of a small Italian village and how two immigrants fit into and challenge those traditions.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

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Audience Member

"Io Sono Li" in italiano. Delizioso film che parla di immigrazione, amore e intolleranza in una cornice originale come quella di Chioggia.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

Full Review

Audience Member

We meet a Chinese woman, Li, that works at a small cafe in Italy trough some controlling mafia sort of business. We also get to know some guys that often visit the place and especially the other lead, together with Li is very interesting. "Li and the Poet" is a moving and superb film. A flawless pace and a slow build up combined with amazing shots and a score that really lifts the film. It's poetic and very real. A quiet and very gentle little stunner. This gem is very overlooked but if you get the chance I suggest you give it a go. You won't regret it. 8.5 out of 10 grappa drinks.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/17/23

Full Review

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Andrea Segre

Director

Tao Zhao

Shun Li

Rade Serbedzija

Bepi

Marco Paolini

Coppe

Roberto Citran

Avvocato

Giuseppe Battiston

Devis

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Charlotte O'Sullivan

London Evening Standard

The plot is preposterous, offering up not one, but two, saintly females for our hi falutin' delectation.

Rated: 3/5

Jun 22, 2013

Full Review

Mark Kermode

Observer (UK)

This is haunting and affecting with visual poetry to spare.

Jun 22, 2013

Full Review

Donald Clarke

Irish Times

Shun Li and the Poet actually believes in the inherent decency of strangers. Don't hold that against it.

Rated: 3/5

Jun 21, 2013

Full Review

Ben Nicholson

CineVue

Segre's choice to tell a very personal story, and largely lap at the edges of the issues involved, makes for a wonderfully emotive voyage that works so well precisely because the current was not too strong.

Rated: 4/5

Feb 26, 2019

Full Review

Tom Dawson

The List

Francois Couturier's score is overly emphatic in places in tugging at our heartstrings, but the film's gentle humanity is to be cherished.

Rated: 4/5

Jun 21, 2013

Full Review

Rich Cline

Shadows on the Wall

Writer-director Segre gives this sensitive story a nicely understated quality that forces us to identify with the central characters in ways that continually catch us off guard.

Rated: 3.5/5

Jun 20, 2013

Full Review

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Synopsis

A Chinese barmaid (Tao Zhao) and a Slavic fisherman (Rade Serbedzija) find friendship and more in an Italian fishing village.

Director: Andrea Segre
Screenwriter: Andrea Segre, Marco Pettenello
Production Co: RAI Cinema
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Italian
Release Date (Streaming): May 9, 2017
Runtime: 1h 32m

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