Black Cannon is the first satirical comedy worthy of the name made in China in 30 years. Engineer Zhao Shuxin (played by Liu Zifeng, who must be China s answer to Woody Allen) is suspected of industrial espionage when he sends a somewhat cryptic telegram to a friend. He is therefore prevented from working with a visiting German expert, who has come to install some new plant. But the German desperately needs a skilled technical translator and Zhao is the only one around...

Using situations and dialogue that are all too obviously drawn from everyday Chinese life, the film
pillories bureaucratic paranoia and incompetence and depicts a society that digs all its own traps. The humour is
matched by the visual flair: there are some boldly stylised designs and there's a striking use of stark primary
colours. Another terrific debut feature from filmmakers of the new generation, and another cornerstone of China's
new wave.

Tony Rayns