"Jia Zhang-ke explores the masculine codes of his country and his own previous work in this ravishing, self-referential film about a woman in love with a mobster, with an astonishing lead performance from Zhao Tao." – Sight and Sound

In his 13th collaboration with wife and muse Tao, Jia (Mountains May Depart, MIFF 2015; A Touch of Sin, MIFF 2013) crafts a patient yet emotionally propulsive drama that doubles as a damning state of the nation. Brandishing the director’s usual penchant for kinetic action and pop-scored dance sequences, Ash is Purest White examines the choices that not only make, shape and break relationships, but also lives – not to mention an increasingly changing China.

It’s 2001, and Qiao’s existence revolves around gangster Bin, but she steers clear of his underworld antics. When they’re attacked in the street, she fires the gun that saves him and then lands in prison for having an unlicensed weapon. Released five years later, Qiao expects to pick up where their romance left off, only to discover that love and loyalty have become elusive concepts.

"Beautifully unsettling, poetic and dazzling, simultaneously dark and radiant, Ash is Purest White will surely count as one of Jia Zhang-ke’s greatest films." – Le Monde