Streetwise

In the debut feature of Chinese writer/director, Na Jiazuo, outcasts wander the streets aimlessly in the forgotten corners of the city. Dongzi, a small-town youth, becomes debt-collector, Xi Jun’s henchman in an attempt to pay off his sick father’s hospital bills. A cold and estranged parent-child relationship, an unsettling life on the streets, and an ambiguous relationship with a young woman; in Dongzi’s shoes, this is what it is like to be twenty-one. Dongzi means »east« in Chinese. He dreams of the sea, and of freedom. And the ocean is in the east of China. His ideal is freedom, but the reality he lives in is very different. His friendships, love and family relationships keep him trapped where he is. »Dunno« is tattooed on the inside of his arm. Because life for him asks so many questions that will never be answered. Breathtaking and unforgettable.