“Gut-wrenchingly up close and personal.” - Variety

Filmmaker Lu Chuan (Kekexili: Mountain Patrol, MIFF 2004) shows the ‘Rape of Nanking' to be an appropriate and horrific title for the atrocities committed in the then capital of China during the Japanese invasion of 1937. In just six weeks over 300,000 people were killed and many more raped and tortured by Japanese soldiers.

In gritty black and white, City of Life and Death depicts the battle from both sides. At times both violent and harrowing, it gives new perspective on events that still lay heavy in the hearts of the Chinese, and remain a point of contention for the Japanese.

Lu's visceral feature has garnered multiple awards, including the Asia Pacific Screen Award for Best Director at the 2009 Asia Pacific Screen Awards.