The comedy film "Gaoxing", adapted from contemporary writer Jia Pingwa's novel of the same name, can be regarded as the final movie rounding up the New Year film season. The light-hearted flick premiered in Beijing earlier last week and was released across China on February 5.

Poster of A Gan's latest comedy film "Gaoxing" [ent.sina.com.cn]

In the film, actor Guo Tao and actress Tian Yuan sing a love song in the Shaanxi dialect. Actress Miao Pu breaks from her previous more conservative screen roles, to play a hostess wearing weird plastic dresses. The comedy was pre-released in Xi'an ten days ahead of the rest of the country and was well received.

"Gaoxing" is named after the lead male role, played by Guo Tao. The film tells the story of a man who makes a living by collecting trash. At the premiere, Guo Tao and Miao Pu revealed their singing talent, singing songs from the film.

Director A Gan turns away from his usual slapstick style with this latest offering concentrating on portraying the real world of minor players in society.

A Gan said, "I was in a very generous mood making the movie. Although some have said that the dance in the movie is like that in another movie, I can't shoot a movie without any elements that have appeared in previous films. The film industry has hundreds of years of history. There has to be some similarity between your film and previous films."

Gaoxing
Director: A Gan
Cast: Guo Tao, Miao Pu, Tian Yuan, Huang Bo
Genre: Comedy/Drama
Release Date (China): February 5, 2009

(CRI February 9, 2009)