Old Beast

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Old Beast

2017

1h 48m

Drama

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100%

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6 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

An aging Erdosian businessman's children take him to court when he takes the money that has been raised for his wife's surgery.

Richard Kuipers

Variety

Social realism is delivered with an impressively tough edge in "Old Beast," a compelling portrait of a selfish father whose reprehensible behavior drives his adult children to take drastic action.

Nov 3, 2017

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Clarence Tsui

The Hollywood Reporter

Armed with some gritty mise-en-scene, riveting camerawork and a gripping turn by veteran Tu Men in the leading role, Zhou Ziyang's first feature offers an engaging portrait of dreary, disoriented lives in a provincial Chinese city.

Oct 24, 2017

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Panos Kotzathanasis

Asian Movie Pulse

"Old Beast" is a great film that highlights the director's knowledge of the place he grew up at and Tu Men's performance, as it presents a combination of entertainment and meaningfulness through a number of points but quite realistic social remarks.

Nov 30, 2019

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Jennie Kermode

Eye for Film

Though a little too crude to work as powerfully as it might in dramatic terms, Old Beast is nevertheless an important film, and a bold one to make considering the politics of state funders and censors.

Rated: 3/5

Feb 28, 2018

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James Marsh

South China Morning Post

Zhou's screenplay perfectly captures the frustrations of the new generation, but fails to make them any more sympathetic than their transparently detestable father.

Rated: 3/5

Dec 20, 2017

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Sarah Ward

Screen International

In a film that doesn't shy away from depicting harsh truths, Zhou lets the drama unravel without any overt histrionics; never playing the situation for easy tears or cathartic laughs.

Oct 30, 2017

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Audience Member

Old Beast is a ruthless and honest depiction of a family riddled with dysfunction, misplaced loyalty, and selfish intentions abound. It is a roller coaster ride that plunges downhill from the start and doesn't yield until the very last scene.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

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Ziyang Zhou

Director

Tumen

Lao Yang

Chaobei Wang

Yang Bing

Danna Yi

Wang Lixia

Mingshuo Wang

Yang Mei

Feng Su

Liang Guodong

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Synopsis

An aging Erdosian businessman's children take him to court when he takes the money that has been raised for his wife's surgery.

Director: Ziyang Zhou
Producer: Xuan Liu, Wang Xiaoshuai
Screenwriter: Ziyang Zhou
Production Co: Scenefone Film Equipment Rental, Glowing Peak Entertainment, Beijing Daqiao Tangren Entertainment Co., FangJin Visual Media Culture Communication (Beijing) Co., Dongchun Films, Having Me Films
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Chinese
Runtime: 1h 48m