Better Days [Blu-ray]

Director: Kwok Cheung Tsang, Alessio Di Giambattista Kwok Cheung Tsang

Overview

As the gaokao, a marathon two-day examination period for high school students, draws nearer, students across China prepare for the test that will determine the course of their life paths after high school. The narrative hones in on introverted Nian (Dongyu Zhou) who studies endlessly, yet finds herself embroiled in classroom drama and bullying in the wake of a peer's suicide. She then crosses paths with Bei (Jackson Yee), a petty criminal, and the two agree to a tenuous bargain. Directed by Kwok Cheung Tsang.

Product Details

Release Date:	05/05/2020
UPC:	0810348031266
Original Release:	2019
Rating:	NR
Source:	Well Go Usa
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Language:	English
Time:	2:16:00

Special Features

Making Of; Trailers

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Dongyu Zhou	Chen Nian
Jackson Yee	Xiao Bei
Fang Ying	Zheng Yi
Jue Huang	Lao Yang
Cody Brotter	Actor
Zachary Mooren	Actor
Sara Lindsey	Actor
Jodie Moore	Actor
Francesco Bauco	Actor
George Barber	Actor
Jamie Gray Hyder	Actor
Billy Howerdel	Zeppelin
Adam Huber	Matt
Emanuela Postacchini	Mia
Huang Jue	Lao Yang
Kwok Tsang	Kwok Cheung Tsang
Wu Yue	Actor
Zhou Ye	Actor
Varqa Buehrer	Composer

Technical Credits

Yimeng Xu

Lam Wing Sum

Alessio Di Giambattista

Yuan Li

Kwok Cheung Tsang	Director
Yuet-Jan Hui	Producer,Executive Producer
Yimeng Xu	Screenwriter
Lam Wing Sum	Screenwriter
Alessio Di Giambattista	Director,Screenwriter
Scott Connolly	Producer
Veronica Radaelli	Producer
Yuan Li	Screenwriter
Lili Sun	Executive Producer
Zong Shu Jie	Executive Producer
Shen Hao Bo	Executive Producer
Joe Huang	Sound/Sound Designer
Qin Hong	Executive Producer

Editorial Reviews

Better Days is a Chinese coming-of-age drama about trying to find your place in a society where your role is so limited, it's almost predetermined. Strong performances from the leading teenagers and a dark subject matter lead to some real grit, finely executed. In China, there's a two-day, national college entrance exam called the gaokao, which for millions of high school seniors will greatly dictate the rest of their lives. Because of the traditional culture of 'saving face,' this placement exam also determines one's family's status, intensifying the pressure. This drives a relentlessly bullied star student, Hu, to take her own life by throwing herself off the top of a building. Her only friend, Chen Nian (Zhou Dongyu) is civil enough to cover her up while the many other gawkers try to photograph the body. Unfortunately for Chen, this leads to her becoming a new target for the bullies to pick on. While she's trying to navigate this struggle at school, her home life is threatening to collapse as well. Chen's single mother is trying to do anything she can to support the family during these trying times with the dream of one day being in a better place-if Chen is able to get into a good college. Chen meets her opposite in Xiao Bei (Jackson Yee) a high school dropout who's not worried at all about any tests or colleges. Looking out for her own survival, Chen convinces Xiao to protect her from the school bullies. But she gets more than she bargained for. She discovers something in Xiao that she hasn't learned from any of her books-a deep affection that she can't find anywhere else in her life. In a place where people are required to put on a face and act a certain way for their entire lives, Chen and Xiao manage to opt out so they can be with each other. From the darkness around them, the two of them survive by creating their own light. Director Derek Tsang (Soulmate, Good Take!) takes on the task of coaching a slew of kids to dig deep into their personal backgrounds and proficiently and consistently hits the highest marks. The beats are sad, sweet, vivid, and memorable. He has paid enough attention to the little details of his characters that would otherwise be swallowed up in this massive generation-defining event. Ultimately, this is a fine film in every regard: poignant, sweet, and uplifting, even living inside the dark background and true-to-life cultural source material. Despite the bleak landscape and bloodied faces, there is no moralizing here-only a character and place study that may open some eyes to another way in which people struggle to live out their lives.