This film is part of Rentals
Ash Is Purest White
Heartbreak and resilience fuel Jia Zhangke's quietly epic saga, in which one woman’s fortitude and knack for crime carry her through a rapidly changing China.
Director: Jia Zhangke
Overview
Qiao (Zhao Tao) is the humble yet sassy moll to the swaggering but fair Bin (Liao Fan), a handsome gangster in a depressed mining town. When Bin’s ballroom dancing-obsessed boss is bumped off, Bin moves up, becoming leader of the ‘Jianghu’, a brotherhood of honourable criminals. But times have changed and honour is out of fashion, so when Bin is attacked by members of a new generation of wannabe mobsters, Qiao makes a decision that will have a seismic impact upon their lives. Ambitious and inventive, Ash Is Purest White is sprinkled with pop references and even some cosmic moments.
Director Jia Zhangke continues to surprise with his perceptive chronicles of Chinese society, aided here by a magnificent performance from Zhao Tao as the woman who cannot be stopped.
Related
Red Island Red Island
Drama 2023 117 mins Director: Robin Campillo
French writer-director Robin Campillo offers a searching exploration of memory and politics, in this boldly conceived story of boyhood in 1970s Madagascar.
Drift Drift
Drama 2023 93 mins Director: Anthony Chen
Cynthia Erivo delivers a captivating performance as a young refugee, who after fleeing war-torn Liberia finds hope when she meets a fellow lost soul.
Drifter Drifter
Drama 2023 79 mins Director: Hannes Hirsch
A scintillating portrait of a young man coming to terms with life, love, sex and relationships in contemporary Berlin.
Four Daughters Four Daughters
Drama-documentary 2023 103 mins Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
The mother-daughter relationship is explored to cathartic effect in this complex and poignant hybrid documentary about a woman and her missing daughters.
Her Last Affaire Her Last Affaire
Drama 1936 68 mins Director: Michael Powell
Michael Powell's 'society drama’ involving suspicion, clandestine romance and presumed murder, and glorious comic double-act from Googie Withers and John Lurie.
She Will She Will
Thriller 2021 96 mins Director: Charlotte Colbert
In Charlotte Colbert’s strikingly gothic film, an ageing actor recovering from a mastectomy taps into a mysterious power at a remote Scottish retreat.
RBG RBG
Biopic 2018 99 mins Director: Julie Cohen and Betsy West
Revelatory documentary on an unexpected hero - former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The Wife The Wife
Drama 2018 100 mins Director: Björn Runge
Glenn Close and Jonathan Pryce are the spouses with a secret in a tight, taut drama of ego and legacy.
Sauvage Sauvage
Drama 2018 99 mins Director: Camille Vidal-Naquet
The daily misfortunes of a lonesome rent boy are laid bare in this tough but tender portrait of life on the fringes of society.
Wildlife Wildlife
Drama 2018 105 mins Director: Paul Dano
Carey Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal play a couple on the rocks in Paul Dano’s directorial debut, an elegant 1950s-set melodrama.
Shoplifters Shoplifters
Drama 2018 121 mins Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Hirokazu Koreeda's modern masterpiece is dark yet touching account of an unorthodox family that relies on shoplifting to make ends meet.
Diego Maradona Diego Maradona
Documentary 2019 124 mins Director: Asif Kapadia
The supreme football superstar is the latest subject for acclaimed filmmaker Asif Kapadia (Amy, Senna), as he deftly explores the complicated dynamic between Diego the man and Maradona the icon.
Mountains May Depart Mountains May Depart
Drama 2015 126 mins Director: Jia Zhangke
Jia Zhangke delivers another ambitious, astute and humane drama, spanning the early days of Chinese capitalism to a vision of 2025.
24 City 24 City
Drama-documentary 2008 107 mins Director: Jia Zhangke
Jia Zhangke mixes reminiscence and performance in his cool, measured, moving look at the changing fortunes of a Chinese factory-turned-shopping mall
Mountains May Depart Mountains May Depart
Drama 2015 126 mins Director: Jia Zhangke
Jia Zhangke delivers another ambitious, astute and humane drama, spanning the early days of Chinese capitalism to a vision of 2025.
24 City 24 City
Drama-documentary 2008 107 mins Director: Jia Zhangke
Jia Zhangke mixes reminiscence and performance in his cool, measured, moving look at the changing fortunes of a Chinese factory-turned-shopping mall
Red Island Red Island
Drama 2023 117 mins Director: Robin Campillo
French writer-director Robin Campillo offers a searching exploration of memory and politics, in this boldly conceived story of boyhood in 1970s Madagascar.
Drift Drift
Drama 2023 93 mins Director: Anthony Chen
Cynthia Erivo delivers a captivating performance as a young refugee, who after fleeing war-torn Liberia finds hope when she meets a fellow lost soul.
Late Night with the Devil Late Night with the Devil
Horror 2023 93 mins Director: Colin Cairnes and Cameron Cairnes
Like Ghostwatch reimagined as a cheesy 1970s chat show, this deviously clever found-footage horror has scares to spare.
Drifter Drifter
Drama 2023 79 mins Director: Hannes Hirsch
A scintillating portrait of a young man coming to terms with life, love, sex and relationships in contemporary Berlin.
Boys on Film 24: Happy Endings Boys on Film 24: Happy Endings
Anthology 2024 174 mins Director: Jason Bradbury, Jesse Ung, Diego Alvarez Parra, Itai Jamshy, Fabia Martin, Alejandro Sandoval Bertín, Sara Larrota, Benjamin Belloir, Jeremy McClain and Arthur Cahn
A compilation of new gay short films showcasing unashamedly positive stories of love, sex and romance to move, inspire and uplift.
Four Daughters Four Daughters
Drama-documentary 2023 103 mins Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
The mother-daughter relationship is explored to cathartic effect in this complex and poignant hybrid documentary about a woman and her missing daughters.