Dead Pigs

Dead Pigs (Chinese: 海上浮城) is a 2018 comedy drama film written and directed by Cathy Yan in her directorial feature film debut. It stars Vivian Wu, Haoyu Yang, Mason Lee, Meng Li, and David Rysdahl. The film had its world premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition section at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2018.[2][3] It is scheduled to be released on February 12, 2021, by Mubi.[4]

Dead Pigs
Chinese海上浮城
Directed byCathy Yan
Produced by
  • Clarissa Zhang
  • Jane Zheng
Written byCathy Yan
Music byAndrew Orkin
CinematographyFederico Cesca
Edited byAlex Kopit
Distributed byMubi
Release date
  • January 19, 2018 (2018-01-19) (Sundance)
  • January 25, 2019 (2019-01-25) (China)
  • February 12, 2021 (2021-02-12)
Running time
130 minutes[1]
Country
  • China
  • United States
Language
  • Chinese
  • English

Cast

Production

The film was written and directed by Cathy Yan.[5] It was inspired by the 2013 Huangpu River dead pigs incident.[6] Yan said, "I was born close to Shanghai, and I used to be a reporter, so it just felt like the story I had to tell."[7] The film was shot by Federico Cesca.[8] Filming took place in Shanghai.[9]

Release

The film had its world premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition section at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2018.[2][3] It was released in China on January 25, 2019.[10] The film is scheduled to be released worldwide on February 12, 2021, by Mubi.[11][4]

Reception

Critical reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 100% based on 8 reviews, and an average rating of 7.5/10.[12]

Justin Lowe of The Hollywood Reporter descried the film as "a dark, quirky comedy that peels back the layers of contemporary Mainland mores and reveals a group of people almost completely deracinated by their quest to get ahead in a society buffeted by rapidly shifting cultural expectations."[13] Jessica Kiang of Variety wrote, "Yan's film, with its dancing girls, pigeon-fancying beauticians, Westerners-on-the-make and spontaneous musical numbers, is an antidote to China's weightier arthouse output, settling the stomach after too much stolid social realism, effervescent as an alka-seltzer."[14]

Accolades
Award Year of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref(s)
Palm Springs International Film Festival 2019 Ricky Jay Magic of Cinema Award Dead Pigs Won [15]
Philadelphia Film Festival 2018 Archie Award for Best First Feature Dead Pigs Won [16]
Seattle International Film Festival 2018 Grand Jury Prize for New Directors Competition Dead Pigs Won [17]
China Stars Award for Best First Film Dead Pigs Won
Sundance Film Festival 2018 World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Ensemble Acting Dead Pigs Won [18]
Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival 2018 National Bank Best First Feature Film Award Dead Pigs Won [19]

References
  1. "Dead Pigs". Sundance Film Festival. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  2. N'Duka, Amanda (January 21, 2018). "'Dead Pigs' Director Cathy Yan On How Filmmaking & Reporting Are Similar – Sundance Studio". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  3. Munzenrieder, Kyle (April 17, 2018). "Who is Cathy Yan? Discovering the Unknown Director of Margot Robbie's Next Harley Quinn Film". W. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  4. @Mubi (February 9, 2021). "Watch our brand new trailer for DEAD PIGS, the bold and biting social satire from BIRDS OF PREY director @CathyYan. Streaming globally and exclusively from Friday" (Tweet). Retrieved February 9, 2021 – via Twitter.
  5. Hipes, Patrick (January 17, 2018). "'Dead Pigs' First Look: Sundance World Cinema Title A Snapshot Of Modern China". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  6. Saito, Stephen (January 24, 2018). "Sundance '18 Interview: Cathy Yan on Breathing Life Into the Delightful "Dead Pigs"". The Moveable Fest. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  7. July, Beandrea (January 17, 2018). "Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Cathy Yan — "Dead Pigs"". Women and Hollywood. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  8. Rezayazdi, Soheil (January 25, 2018). ""We Were Using Dolly, Crane and Steadicam Under Real and Artificial Rain": DP Federico Cesca on Dead Pigs". Filmmaker. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  9. Desta, Yohana (February 5, 2020). "Why Harley Quinn Said Goodbye to Her Infamous Shorts in Birds of Prey". Vanity Fair. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  10. Baron, Reuben (February 15, 2020). "Dead Pigs: When Will We See the Birds of Prey Director's First Film?". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  11. Evanglista, Chris (January 15, 2021). "'Dead Pigs' The First Feature Film from 'Birds of Prey' Director Cathy Yan Is Finally Being Released Domestically on Mubi". Slash Film. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  12. "Dead Pigs". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  13. Lowe, Justin (January 19, 2018). "'Dead Pigs': Film Review | Sundance 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  14. Kiang, Jessica (January 24, 2018). "Sundance Film Review: 'Dead Pigs'". Variety. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  15. "30th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Announces Award Winners". Palm Springs International Film Festival. January 13, 2019. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  16. "27th Philadelphia Film Festival". Philadelphia Film Festival. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  17. "SIFF 2018 Award Winners". Seattle International Film Festival. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  18. "2018 Sundance Film Festival Awards Announced". Sundance Film Festival. January 27, 2018. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  19. "Awards & Jury". Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
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