(Chinese with Eng. subtitles)

Director Wang Xiaoshuai recycles the basic idea from Vittorio De Sica’s neo-realist classic "Bicycle Thief" (1947) and elevates it to a new high with "Bejing Bicycle." He depicts the hopes and dreams of the lower working class through the eyes of Guei, a poor country boy from a remote village in China, who comes to Bejing in desperate need of a job. All he needs is a bike - the first symbol of upward mobility and the lifeline to a livelihood in a city of bikes. Guei travels Bejing on foot looking for work with the whirring of bicycle wheels circling his every step. His sheer tenacity finally impresses the owner of a bike messenger service enough to give him a shot, but Guei must pay for his bike out of his wages. Elated - hungry - and woefully inexperienced, he misinterprets every gesture of the denizens of Beijing and messes up an important delivery only to find his bike stolen. With no bike, no money, no food and no job, Guei drives himself to look at every bike on the lines of bike racks that dot the city. When he locates it, he must steal it back. But, being a bicycle thief is just as bad as being a horse thief and not without consequences.

Guei runs head to head with an equally tenacious prep school kid named Jian who needs a bike to run with the pack as well as to impress and win himself a girlfriend. Jian in turn has an ongoing fight with his father over a broken promise, and a tenuous relationship with his peers who side with him because he is one of their own. The brutality of gang rule, Guei’s unrelenting will to claim what is his, and a father’s wrath are played out in the back alleys, tenements and narrow streets on the fringes of the city. Guei’s naivete and his ignorance of city ways force him to reach a compromise that can only invite disaster - but to whom? . That’s the beauty of "Bejing Bicycle." You’re never really sure how it will turn out.

One thing is for sure, like the young son in "Bicyle Thief," Guei’s zealous pursuit of work, the will to better himself, his forthright honesty and his unwillingness to admit defeat are like beacons of light that illuminate the way to China’s future. Otherwise, "Bejing Bicycle" is a study in contrasts. Guei is willing to sacrifice everything but his pride to better himself while Jian is an ingrate who fails to appreciate the sacrifices made by his father. The burgeoning city of Bejing first appears like the land of Oz waiting for Guei to discover its secrets until he becomes a victim of its pariahs. The glitter of its facade is as deceiving as the mysterious woman who stirs Guei’s desires. One by one the conformist layers of the city’s lifestyle symbolized by the uniform dress code of its schools and bike messengers to the identical parked bikes that line its streets are peeled away to reveal the lifeblood of the workers who create the driving pulse of Bejing.

Copyright 2002

"Bicycle Thief" (1947 - Italian with Eng. subtitles) - Dir. Vittorio De Sica: The neo-realist classic about the father whose bike is stolen and the son who helps him look for it. De Sica not only depicts the plight of the working man in Italy right but shows a city recovering from years of strife in the aftermath of WWII.

"Rocco and His Brothers" (1960 - Italian with Eng. subtitles) - Dir. Luchino Visconti: A rural family moves to Milan in the hope of finding a better life. They experience the hardships of the city with its despair and crime. Alain Delon is the idealistic title character who finds his future in the boxing ring.

"The Cousins" (1959 - Fr. with Eng. subtitles) - Dir. Claude Chabrol: Country cousin Gerard Blain takes up residence with and is corrupted by his city bred cousin Jean Claude Brialy in this New Wave classic. The study in contrasts and the battle over ideals stand in direct contrast to Guei’s fight to hold onto his dignity in "Bejing Bicylce."

"Hoppity Goes to Town" (1941) - Animated feature from Dave Fleischer about a family of bugs who go up against some city slicker beetles.