Dead Pigs

Dead Pigs (Chinese: 海上浮城; literally "floating city on the sea") is a 2018 comedy drama film written and directed by Cathy Yan in her directorial feature film debut. It stars Vivian Wu, Haoyu Yang, Mason Lee, Meng Li, and David Rysdahl. The film had its world premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition section at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2018.[1][2] It was released worldwide on February 12, 2021 on Mubi.[3]

Dead Pigs
Chinese海上浮城
Directed byCathy Yan
Written byCathy Yan
Produced by
  • Clarissa Zhang
  • Jane Zheng
CinematographyFederico Cesca
Edited byAlex Kopit
Music byAndrew Orkin
Distributed byMubi
Release dates
  • January 19, 2018 (2018-01-19) (Sundance)
  • January 25, 2019 (2019-01-25) (China)
  • February 12, 2021 (2021-02-12)
Running time
121 minutes
Countries
  • China
  • United States
Languages
  • Chinese
  • English
  • Shanghainese

Synopsis

A bumbling pig farmer, a feisty salon owner, a sensitive busboy, an ambitious expat architect and a disenchanted rich girl converge and collide as thousands of dead pigs float down the river towards a rapidly modernizing Shanghai, China.

Cast
  • Vivian Wu as Candy Wang
  • Haoyu Yang as Old Wang
  • Mason Lee as Wang Zhen
  • Meng Li as Xia Xia
  • David Rysdahl as Sean Landry
  • Zazie Beetz as Angie
  • Archibald C. McColl IV as Phil Johnson

Production

The film was written and directed by Cathy Yan.[4] It was inspired by the 2013 Huangpu River dead pigs incident.[5] Yan said, "I was born close to Shanghai, and I used to be a reporter, so it just felt like the story I had to tell."[6] The film was shot by Federico Cesca.[7] Filming took place in Shanghai.[8]

Release

The film had its world premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition section at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2018.[1][9][2] It was released in China on January 25, 2019.[10] The film was released worldwide on February 12, 2021 by Mubi.[11][3]

Reception

Critical reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 97% based on 33 reviews, and an average rating of 7.7/10. Its site consensus reads, "Dead Pigs casts a sharp critical and satirical eye toward late-stage capitalism in China and the world beyond, establishing writer-director Cathy Yan as a filmmaker to watch."[12] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 72 out of 100 based on 9 reviews.[13]

Justin Lowe of The Hollywood Reporter described the film as "a dark, quirky comedy that peels back the layers of contemporary Mainland mores and reveals a group of people almost completely deracinated by their quest to get ahead in a society buffeted by rapidly shifting cultural expectations."[14] Jessica Kiang of Variety wrote, "Yan's film, with its dancing girls, pigeon-fancying beauticians, Westerners-on-the-make and spontaneous musical numbers, is an antidote to China's weightier arthouse output, settling the stomach after too much stolid social realism, effervescent as an alka-seltzer."[15] Elizabeth Horkley of Mubi praised the verisimilitude of Yan's cast of characters, writing: "Dead Pigs, in its favoring of ordinary, human interactions over narrative pomp, leads to unexpected places that shouldn't be unexpected at all. Her characters behave like multifaceted humans, and the pleasure in watching Yan’s debut feature is akin to the feeling of meeting someone new who you think you're going to like."[16]

Accolades
Award Year of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref(s)
Palm Springs International Film Festival 2019 Ricky Jay Magic of Cinema Award Dead Pigs Won [17]
Philadelphia Film Festival 2018 Archie Award for Best First Feature Won [18]
Seattle International Film Festival 2018 Grand Jury Prize for New Directors Competition Won [19]
China Stars Award for Best First Film Won
Sundance Film Festival 2018 World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Ensemble Acting Won [20]
Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival 2018 National Bank Best First Feature Film Award Won [21]

References
  1. N'Duka, Amanda (January 21, 2018). "'Dead Pigs' Director Cathy Yan On How Filmmaking & Reporting Are Similar – Sundance Studio". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  2. Munzenrieder, Kyle (April 17, 2018). "Who is Cathy Yan? Discovering the Unknown Director of Margot Robbie's Next Harley Quinn Film". W. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  3. @Mubi (February 9, 2021). "Watch our brand new trailer for DEAD PIGS, the bold and biting social satire from BIRDS OF PREY director @CathyYan. Streaming globally and exclusively from Friday" (Tweet). Retrieved February 9, 2021 – via Twitter.
  4. Hipes, Patrick (January 17, 2018). "'Dead Pigs' First Look: Sundance World Cinema Title A Snapshot Of Modern China". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  5. Saito, Stephen (January 24, 2018). "Sundance '18 Interview: Cathy Yan on Breathing Life Into the Delightful "Dead Pigs"". The Moveable Fest. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  6. July, Beandrea (January 17, 2018). "Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Cathy Yan — "Dead Pigs"". Women and Hollywood. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  7. Rezayazdi, Soheil (January 25, 2018). ""We Were Using Dolly, Crane and Steadicam Under Real and Artificial Rain": DP Federico Cesca on Dead Pigs". Filmmaker. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  8. Desta, Yohana (February 5, 2020). "Why Harley Quinn Said Goodbye to Her Infamous Shorts in Birds of Prey". Vanity Fair. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  9. "Dead Pigs". Sundance Film Festival. Archived from the original on 2019-02-13. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  10. Baron, Reuben (February 15, 2020). "Dead Pigs: When Will We See the Birds of Prey Director's First Film?". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  11. Evanglista, Chris (January 15, 2021). "'Dead Pigs' The First Feature Film from 'Birds of Prey' Director Cathy Yan Is Finally Being Released Domestically on Mubi". Slash Film. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  12. "Dead Pigs". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  13. "Dead Pigs: 2021". Metacritic. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  14. Lowe, Justin (January 19, 2018). "'Dead Pigs': Film Review | Sundance 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  15. Kiang, Jessica (January 24, 2018). "Sundance Film Review: 'Dead Pigs'". Variety. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  16. "Multifaceted Humans: Close-Up on "Dead Pigs"". MUBI. 12 February 2021. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
  17. "30th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Announces Award Winners". Palm Springs International Film Festival. January 13, 2019. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  18. "27th Philadelphia Film Festival". Philadelphia Film Festival. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  19. "SIFF 2018 Award Winners". Seattle International Film Festival. Archived from the original on 2021-03-02. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  20. "2018 Sundance Film Festival Awards Announced". Sundance Film Festival. January 27, 2018. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  21. "Awards & Jury". Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival. Archived from the original on 2020-08-08. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
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