Watch at Home 01.12.2021

The Road to Mandalay

Directed by Midi Z
Film Movement
2016
108 Minutes
Myanmar, Taiwan
Burmese
Drama, Asian
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Burmese immigrants sneak into Thailand on a well-trafficked route across the Mekong River, down quiet country roads and past bribed police checkpoints. Along this treacherous path to Bangkok, Lianqing (Wu Ke-Xi) and Guo (Kai Ko) meet, and their fates become entwined. After finding work, the couple focuses their efforts on acquiring fake identity papers, but when only one is successful, their relationship becomes threatened.

Director & Cast

  • Director: Midi Z
  • Starring: Wu Ke-Xi
  • Starring: Ko Kai

Where to Watch

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Trailer

Photos

Reviews

  • "Taiwan-based Burmese filmmaker Midi Z produces his best work yet with “The Road to Mandalay.” Following his big leap forward with “Ice Poison,” Midi Z has now delivered a tightly edited and emotionally rewarding drama that places him in the top rank of Asian social realists."
    Richard Kuipers, Variety
  • "Thanks to Midi Z's brilliant command of visual metaphors and compassion for his subjects, [Mandalay] is elevated into an unnervingly immediate portrait of the human cost of displacement."
    Patrick Gamble, CineVue
  • "Compassionate and honestly told, it is a real empathy machine of a movie. And, of course, you can't watch it without thinking of the desperate plight of Burma's Rohingya Muslims."
    Cath Clarke, The Guardian
  • "Taiwanese director Midi Z pins docu-style heft to a resonant character drama about Burmese migrants in Bangkok."
    Kevin Harley, Total Film
  • "A provocative and illuminating portrayal of people lost in the world."
    Steven Nelsh, HeyUGuys
  • "Z effectively shows us the daily grind and takes us through one disappointment after another without ever ceasing to be engaging."
    Jenny Kermode, Eye for Film
  • "A melancholy drama that unfolds at a slow-burning pace, Midi Z's visually engrossing film is elevated by reserved yet indelible turns by Kai Ko and Wu Ke-xi."
    Edmund Lee, South China Morning Post
  • "A deceptively gentle account of the romance between two illegal immigrants in Thailand slowly builds into a moving portrait of the hardships they face and the impossible obstacles to their pursuit of happiness. Simplicity proves to be the greatest strength of a film that grows more involving as it unfolds and will consolidate Midi Z’s status as one of the rising stars of Asian cinema."
    Allan Hunter, Screen Daily
  • "The Road to Mandalay is a bewitching, social-realist drama from Taiwanese film director, Midi Z."
    Jim Mackney, The London Economic
Winner
Fedeora Award
Venice Film Festival
Winner
Best Director
Asia-Pacific Film Festival
Winner
Press Award
Taipei Film Festival
Nominated
Best Film
Golden Horse Film Festival
Nominated
Best Director
Golden Horse Film Festival
Nominated
Best Leading Actor
Golden Horse Film Festival
Nominated
Best Leading Actress
Golden Horse Film Festival
Nominated
Best Original Screenplay
Golden Horse Film Festival
Nominated
In Spirit for Freedom Award
Jerusalem Film Festival
Official Selection
Toronto Int'l. Film Festival
Official Selection
Vancouver Int'l. Film Festival