Lost and Found (2008 film)
Encyclopedia
Lost and Found is a 2008 Chinese
black comedy
film and the third feature film directed by Ma Liwen
. The film was based on the novel, I am Liu Yuejin by Liu Zhenyun and tells the story of a down-on-his-luck migrant cook who loses his life savings while in Beijing. The film is also known by the original Chinese title I am Liu Yuejin. The novel was published a mere three months before the film was released.
The film received a domestic opening in China in January 2008 before making limited appearances at various film festivals and screening events.
Lost and Found stars Li Yixiang
, as the main role of Liu Yuejin though the film also boasts several cameos by Chinese filmmakers including Chen Daming (the director of Manhole) and Gao Qunshu (the director of Tokyo Trial
). It was partially produced by the state-subsidized China Film Group
.
), is a migrant worker from Henan
eking out and existence in Beijing
as a cook at a construction site. One day, he is asked by his boss, Yan (Liu Xinyi) to help concoct a fake alibi for him regarding a potential scandal with an actress. Things take a turn for the worse however, when his reward along with the rest of his money is stolen. Also stolen is an IOU for ¥60,000 owed to a man who has taken Liu's wife. When the thief ends up breaking into the home of Yan and his wife (Chen Jin), he steals a disc full of compromising material. This brings down upon Liuy private investigators, mobsters, and others. Into this mess, Liu's son and girlfriend (Zhang Zhiwei and Wang Man) come asking for money...
Cinema of China
The Chinese-language cinema has three distinct historical threads: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China, and Cinema of Taiwan. Since 1949 the cinema of mainland China has operated under restrictions imposed by the Communist Party of China's State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television and...
black comedy
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
film and the third feature film directed by Ma Liwen
Ma Liwen
Ma Liwen is a Chinese film director. Ma has directed a handful of films during the 2000s, including 2005's You and Me, and two films in 2008, Lost and Found and Desires of the Heart.- Biography :...
. The film was based on the novel, I am Liu Yuejin by Liu Zhenyun and tells the story of a down-on-his-luck migrant cook who loses his life savings while in Beijing. The film is also known by the original Chinese title I am Liu Yuejin. The novel was published a mere three months before the film was released.
The film received a domestic opening in China in January 2008 before making limited appearances at various film festivals and screening events.
Lost and Found stars Li Yixiang
Li Yixiang
Li Yixiang , also known as Li Qiang, is a Chinese actor. He appeared in movies such as Ji Quan Bu Ning, Crazy Lottery. In 2002, he starred as one of the two murderous con men in director Li Yang's Blind Shaft, opposite Wang Baoqiang as his naive would-be victim...
, as the main role of Liu Yuejin though the film also boasts several cameos by Chinese filmmakers including Chen Daming (the director of Manhole) and Gao Qunshu (the director of Tokyo Trial
Tokyo Trial (film)
-Story:This film was directed by Gao Qunshu and is about the International Military Tribunal for the Far East after Japan surrendered after World War II. The movie presents the Trial from the point of view of the Chinese judge Mei Ju-ao....
). It was partially produced by the state-subsidized China Film Group
China Film Group
China Film Group Corporation , abbreviated as CFGC, is the largest and most influential state-run film enterprise in China.-History:The predecessor China Film Corporation was established in 1949...
.
Plot
Liu Yuejin (Li YixiangLi Yixiang
Li Yixiang , also known as Li Qiang, is a Chinese actor. He appeared in movies such as Ji Quan Bu Ning, Crazy Lottery. In 2002, he starred as one of the two murderous con men in director Li Yang's Blind Shaft, opposite Wang Baoqiang as his naive would-be victim...
), is a migrant worker from Henan
Henan
Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...
eking out and existence in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
as a cook at a construction site. One day, he is asked by his boss, Yan (Liu Xinyi) to help concoct a fake alibi for him regarding a potential scandal with an actress. Things take a turn for the worse however, when his reward along with the rest of his money is stolen. Also stolen is an IOU for ¥60,000 owed to a man who has taken Liu's wife. When the thief ends up breaking into the home of Yan and his wife (Chen Jin), he steals a disc full of compromising material. This brings down upon Liuy private investigators, mobsters, and others. Into this mess, Liu's son and girlfriend (Zhang Zhiwei and Wang Man) come asking for money...
Cast
- Li YixiangLi YixiangLi Yixiang , also known as Li Qiang, is a Chinese actor. He appeared in movies such as Ji Quan Bu Ning, Crazy Lottery. In 2002, he starred as one of the two murderous con men in director Li Yang's Blind Shaft, opposite Wang Baoqiang as his naive would-be victim...
as the titular (in the Chinese title) Liu Yuejin, a migrant cook from Henan working in BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
. - Liu Xinyi as Yan, a real-estate tycoon and the boss of Liu Yuejin.
- Chen Jin as Yan's wife.
- Zhang Zhiwei as Liu's son.
- Wang Man as Liu's daughter-in-law.
External links
Official site from Beijing Chengtian Zhihong (Orange Sky) TV & Film Production Company- Lost as Found a the Chinese Movie Database (as I am Liu Yuejin)