Xin hua lu fang

I didn't know exactly what to expect, but the trailer looked original and I wanted a change from all the usual films that I watch. I was pleasantly surprised. There is a brutal honesty in the script that really helps you connect with the main character. The twist at the end was also really nice, putting things together in an unexpected, but totally consistent way.

The story is about this guy who went through a recent divorce with a wife that he still loves and, convinced by his womanizing buddy, leaves on a road trip. But the comedy is not really in weird and fantastic adventures on the road, but on realistic and often hard breaking acting from the lead actor while normal things happen around him. I mean, you don't like him because he is charming, or sexy or even a nice guy. He is far from perfect, but he is a normal guy and the things that happen to him are so familiar because they happen to us as well. And the comedy is so much more bitter-sweet because it doesn't feel like a fantasy.

I also liked that it is an easy going movie on one level, but has real subtlety and depth at the next. The budget wasn't great, the acting not stellar, but the film was totally worth it.