“River Flows By” by Yin Song

We are always very fascinated by the average quality of the asian films. It seems that the philosophy behind the images and the cinematography work is always more accurate than in european or american films. This short movie by Yin Song called “River Flows By” is a confirmation of this feeling.

Its drama story of solitude and intimacy, of pain and nostalgia, is framed by an absolutely brilliant cinematography, that always puts the characters in correlation with the city. The backgrounds of all the shot work like an extra character, moving, creating space, vectors of movement, feeling of uneasiness and smallness. The gloomy, dark night scenes give the feeling a tone and an atmosphere that give us a very powerful feeling of loneliness and pain.

The director vision is also very interesting. It always looks like the film is staged on more than one layer of depth, and the staging always takes care of more than one situation at once, putting different elements in correlation with each other.

The sound work and the original score also create a mood that emphasizes the screenplay and the stories told inside the film. Editing uses a very wide array of solutions to connect scenes and to give rhythm and pace to the story.

We really found this film excellent in all its aspect: a work of art and sensibility that is also able to make us identify with the feelings of its characters.