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The Missing Star

Play trailer The Missing Star 2006 1h 44m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 1 Reviews 64% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
An Italian maintenance man (Sergio Castellitto) travels to China to repair a faulty blast furnace.

Critics Reviews

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Boyd van Hoeij european-films.net Avoids the beaten track in favour of an exploration of who these characters really are, what they want from life and how they try to get it. Sep 16, 2006 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member Un gruppo di industriali cinesi arriva in Italia per acquistare un altoforno da un'acciaieria che sta per chiudere. Vincenzo Buonavolontà, responsabile della manutenzione dell'impianto, sa che la macchina in vendita è difettosa e vuole riparare il guasto per evitare fatali incidenti. Per questo, in un concitato colloquio intermediato da una giovane traduttrice cinese, chiede tempo al responsabile della delegazione. Malgrado le rassicurazioni ricevute, la delegazione cinese riparte in tutta fretta con l'altoforno, smontato rapidamente con la fiamma ossidrica. Così, quando Vincenzo scopre qual è il guasto e come risolverlo, non gli resta che partire per Shanghai con la nuova centralina idraulica da sostituire. Qui, però, riceve una fredda accoglienza dalla ditta di intermediazione che si è occupata di acquistare l'altoforno per un cliente, del quale non gli viene fornito l'indirizzo. L'incontro fortuito sul posto con la giovane traduttrice che aveva conosciuto in Italia ed alla quale ha fatto involontariamente perdere il posto di lavoro, renderà possibile iniziare la ricerca di dove è stato collocato il macchinario, in un lungo viaggio all'interno della Cina e dentro se stesso. [it.wikipedia.org] Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/18/23 Full Review Audience Member Amelio is good as usual, the actors are just top. The story isn't easy and the movie is pretty slow.. It's all about a trip, for everyone in the movie. And as the old says "It's not the destination, it's the journey" a journey so important that make people move and values float. Not one of the lightest movie of Amelio but worth watching it. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Audience Member Amelio is good as usual, the actors are just top. The story isn't easy and the movie is pretty slow.. It's all about a trip, for everyone in the movie. And as the old says "It's not the destination, it's the journey" a journey so important that make people move and values float. Not one of the lightest movie of Amelio but worth watching it. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/10/23 Full Review Audience Member I saw this movie and I was fascinated! "La stelle che non c'è" is a trip through the new industrial China and it shows it honestly! You see most of the time the ugly places of China and you see what really happens with this new industrializing. The main characters are sad but hopefully people. He's the naive Italian guy who can't believe what he sees. As modern Marco Polo, from Venice to China, he is taking on the task to render us the grey area in the middle of two worlds in solid colors. Eroded by globalization's collateral damages, the pessimistic vision of Europe is mutual with Chinas. She's a translator from china who's missing her son. Sometimes sad, sometimes funny but every time poetic! And here is the message to take away from the movie, besides the fact that the world is without strangers, is a reminder to myself that some of the stuff I deem important, and may not be so to others. Importance is something one places upon something else, and its basis really depends on how we define the boundaries we set. So given our finite lifetime, I think I should lighten up a bit more, live and let live, and sometimes bask in the illusion that ignorance could be bliss. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/09/23 Full Review Audience Member Strange film but enjoyable Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/13/23 Full Review Audience Member A sort of Lost in Translation in China. A longing and lingering movie filled with lots of details of everyday China hidden in small moments. The interaction between the two main charachters are firstly odd and then through bitter sweet moments finally ends in enjoyable fashion. The main actor in this movie is China and her vast landscape through which runs the mighty Jangce river. The camera work is very good with wide shots of the beautiful landscape as well the rush of the large cities. The movie has no long conversions and talks, but the emotion of the characters can be read from their eyes. A very nice movie about a journey which always can offer something new and changes us in a way we never expected. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Missing Star

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis An Italian maintenance man (Sergio Castellitto) travels to China to repair a faulty blast furnace.
Director
Gianni Amelio
Producer
Riccardo Tozzi, Giovanni Stabilini, Marco Chimenz
Screenwriter
Gianni Amelio, Umberto Contarello
Production Co
RAI Cinema, Cattleya
Genre
Drama
Original Language
Chinese
Runtime
1h 44m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital