In the Heat of the Sun (1994)

Original title

阳光灿烂的日子

Directed by

Jiang Wen

Genre

drama film

Country

People's Republic of China

Runtime

2h 14m

Rated

IIB

Rating

7.8 of 10 from 143 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A teenage boy and his friends spend their summers in Beijing during the Cultural Revolution getting into fights and chasing after a girl. The film looks back on those days with a mix of warmth and hazy memory.

nostalgicenergeticmischievousdreamlikeintimateemotionalsun-drenchedbittersweet

What happens

In the Heat of the Sun (阳光灿烂的日子) is a 1994 Chinese coming-of-age film written and directed by Jiang Wen, marking his directorial debut. Loosely adapted from Wang Shuo's novel Wild Beast, the film offers a nostalgic lens of life during the Cultural Revolution – one not defined by political trauma, but by adolescent mischief, desire, and memory. The film's original title, which roughly translates to "Bright Sunny Days" was changed to "In the Heat of the Sun" for international audiences during a film festival in Taiwan. The new title was chosen to minimize association with the Cultural Revolution. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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