Night of An Era
Sheng Zhimin
Release year: 2009
Run time: 90 mins
Film type: Documentary
Synopsis
The documentary consists of three clues and provides a comprehensive review of the past decade of Chinese rock. The first clue leads us to the search for Xiao Ke. Wu Ke, a handsome boy who was once the guitarist of the band "Dreaming," caused a sensation in Beijing in 1990. However, this astonishing figure mysteriously disappeared in 1996. The second clue revolves around the past and present of the "Magic Rock Trio." These three influential musicians in the mainland's rock music scene created an era of ideals. The third clue follows Xiao Chang, a boy working in a recording studio. When the camera takes us to his hometown in Shandong, a group of rural youth enthusiastically sings Beyond's song "Truly Love You."
As the director stated at the beginning, the first generation of mainland rock musicians went from having nothing to knowing their place, experiencing a dark dream. They created an ideal era that shone like a meteor. However, they soon encountered the impact of MP3 and commercialism, and the era of Super Girls arrived. The first generation became the forsaken generation. Yet, Cui Jian, Dou Wei, He Yong, and Zhang Chu, these lonely individuals, have no reason to be ashamed. Having experienced the shattering of their ideals, they, as survivors, reveal the spirit of the times. Today, they remain true musicians, walking ahead of the people whom God has blessed with a full stomach.
Director biography
Sheng Zhimin (born 1969) is a Chinese filmmaker from Beijing. Unlike other directors to emerge in recent years, Sheng has had no formal training. He instead began his career as a line producer, screenwriter, and assistant director for other filmmakers like Jia Zhangke, Fruit Chan and Zhang Yang.[1] In these positions, Sheng worked on the films Spicy Love Soup, Durian Durian, Public Toilet, and Platform.