The Missing Gun
Encyclopedia
The Missing Gun is a 2002 Chinese
black comedy
film directed by Lu Chuan
and starring Jiang Wen
, Ning Jing
and Wu Yujuan. A directorial debut of Lu, the film premiered during the 9th Beijing Student Film Festival
on 21 April 2002. A pioneer digital screening was subsequently held in Shanghai
on 28 April, making The Missing Gun the first film screened in China with digital cinema
technology. The film was officially released on 8 May in Beijing
.
Adapted from a novelette by Fan Yiping, the film revolves around a small-town policeman who embarks on a search for his missing gun. The film also explores the themes of self-identity and self-respect, as well as addresses a number of pertinent social issues, such as counterfeit
s, in China.
) wakes up after a drunken night at his sister's wedding banquet
to find his issued gun missing. After making sure his wife Han Xiaoyun (Wu Yujuan) and third-grader son have not taken it, Ma embarks on a search around the town. He questions his sister and brother-in-law, as well as two ex-comrades in an attempt to connect the dots. He finds out that he was sent home the previous night in a car by Zhou Xiaogang (Shi Liang
). Ma knocks on Zhou's door but is greeted by Li Xiaomeng (Ning Jing
), Ma's former lover who married and moved to Guangzhou
, but has since returned. Li claims that Zhou is not home. Ma leaves but manages to run into Zhou a moment later. After searching Zhou's car, he ascertains that Zhou has not taken his gun either.
Ma is left with no choice but to report the missing gun to his superiors. He is stripped of his uniform but is allowed to continue the search on his own. During his search, Ma comes across a thief who has snatched a woman's handbag and gives chase. The desperate thief, seeing no escape, pulls out a gun. Mistaking the gun for his own, Ma refuses to back down. The thief fires, only to reveal that the gun he holds is a fake.
Meanwhile, a murder has taken place in town. A man has sneaked into Zhou's home and shoots Li with the missing gun. Upon interrogation, Zhou insists that he was not the intended target. However, a private investigation undertaken by Ma reveals that Zhou owns an underground factory producing counterfeit wine. Ma then retains Zhou, exchanges clothing with him, and boards a bus heading out of town. True to his prediction, the criminal trails him, thinking that he was Zhou, shoots him from behind at the railway station but fails to kill him instantly. As the criminal approaches to confirm his kill, Ma turns over and locks the two of them together with his handcuffs
.
The criminal turns out to be Stammer Liu, a local bricklayer whose family was poisoned after drinking Zhou's wine. Liu begs Ma to let him go to avenge his family but Ma refuses. Ma then draws out the fake gun he confiscated from the thief earlier and Liu, in fear, pulls the trigger and spends the last bullet left on the former. Ma bleeds profusely and feels faint, lying on the ground. As policemen discover the crime and rush over to apprehend Liu, Ma is shown to suddenly stand upright and walk away with his recovered gun, apparently unhurt from the wounds and euphoric at finding his lost weapon. It is left ambiguous if this is the hallucination
of a dying Ma.
on 21 April 2002, where it clinched the award for Best Debut Film. A pioneer digital screening was then held in Shanghai
on 28 April, marking the first use of digital cinema
in China
. After its official release in Beijing
on 8 May, the film recorded more than ¥
1 million in box office
within a week of release, topping The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. It was subsequently selected for the 59th Venice Film Festival
, though it failed to clinch any awards.
The film drew criticism from the Chinese
National Language and Character Committee for using the Sichuan dialect
instead of Mandarin Chinese. The committee's director Yuan Guiren
disapproved Jiang Wen
's selection of dialects as language media for two consecutive films (the previous being Devils on the Doorstep), claiming that such a choice misguides the audience on the importance of learning Standard Chinese
, a standard adopted by the Chinese government.
, Spanish
, French
and Portuguese
was released on 4 May 2004 and distributed by Sony Pictures Entertainment
in North America
.
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
black comedy
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
film directed by Lu Chuan
Lu Chuan
Lu Chuan is a Chinese filmmaker and screenwriter. He is the son of the novelist, Lu Tianming.-Education:Educated at the People's Liberation Army International Relations University in Nanjing, Lu spent two years serving in the Army as a secretary to a general. After his time in the army, Lu...
and starring Jiang Wen
Jiang Wen
Jiang Wen is a Chinese film actor and director. As a director, he is sometimes grouped with the "sixth generation" that emerged in the 1990s. Jiang is also well known internationally as an actor, having starred with Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's debut film Red Sorghum...
, Ning Jing
Ning Jing
-Filmography:-External links:***...
and Wu Yujuan. A directorial debut of Lu, the film premiered during the 9th Beijing Student Film Festival
Beijing Student Film Festival
Beijing Student Film Festival abbreviated SIFF, first held in 1993, organized by Beijing Normal University and Beijing Municipal Bureau of Radio, Film and Television...
on 21 April 2002. A pioneer digital screening was subsequently held in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
on 28 April, making The Missing Gun the first film screened in China with digital cinema
Digital cinema
Digital cinema refers to the use of digital technology to distribute and project motion pictures. A movie can be distributed via hard drives, optical disks or satellite and projected using a digital projector instead of a conventional film projector...
technology. The film was officially released on 8 May in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
.
Adapted from a novelette by Fan Yiping, the film revolves around a small-town policeman who embarks on a search for his missing gun. The film also explores the themes of self-identity and self-respect, as well as addresses a number of pertinent social issues, such as counterfeit
Counterfeit
To counterfeit means to illegally imitate something. Counterfeit products are often produced with the intent to take advantage of the superior value of the imitated product...
s, in China.
Plot
War veteran turned small-town policeman Ma Shan (played by Jiang WenJiang Wen
Jiang Wen is a Chinese film actor and director. As a director, he is sometimes grouped with the "sixth generation" that emerged in the 1990s. Jiang is also well known internationally as an actor, having starred with Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's debut film Red Sorghum...
) wakes up after a drunken night at his sister's wedding banquet
Wedding reception
A wedding reception is a party held after the completion of a marriage ceremony. It is held usually as hospitality for those who have attended the wedding, hence the name reception: the couple receives society, in the form of family and friends, for the first time as a married couple. Hosts...
to find his issued gun missing. After making sure his wife Han Xiaoyun (Wu Yujuan) and third-grader son have not taken it, Ma embarks on a search around the town. He questions his sister and brother-in-law, as well as two ex-comrades in an attempt to connect the dots. He finds out that he was sent home the previous night in a car by Zhou Xiaogang (Shi Liang
Shi Liang
Shi Liang may refer to:* Shi Liang , Chinese female politician, the first Minister of Justice of the PRC* Shi Liang , general of Ming Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang...
). Ma knocks on Zhou's door but is greeted by Li Xiaomeng (Ning Jing
Ning Jing
-Filmography:-External links:***...
), Ma's former lover who married and moved to Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
, but has since returned. Li claims that Zhou is not home. Ma leaves but manages to run into Zhou a moment later. After searching Zhou's car, he ascertains that Zhou has not taken his gun either.
Ma is left with no choice but to report the missing gun to his superiors. He is stripped of his uniform but is allowed to continue the search on his own. During his search, Ma comes across a thief who has snatched a woman's handbag and gives chase. The desperate thief, seeing no escape, pulls out a gun. Mistaking the gun for his own, Ma refuses to back down. The thief fires, only to reveal that the gun he holds is a fake.
Meanwhile, a murder has taken place in town. A man has sneaked into Zhou's home and shoots Li with the missing gun. Upon interrogation, Zhou insists that he was not the intended target. However, a private investigation undertaken by Ma reveals that Zhou owns an underground factory producing counterfeit wine. Ma then retains Zhou, exchanges clothing with him, and boards a bus heading out of town. True to his prediction, the criminal trails him, thinking that he was Zhou, shoots him from behind at the railway station but fails to kill him instantly. As the criminal approaches to confirm his kill, Ma turns over and locks the two of them together with his handcuffs
Handcuffs
Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists close together. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each half has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet that prevents it from being opened once closed around a person's wrist...
.
The criminal turns out to be Stammer Liu, a local bricklayer whose family was poisoned after drinking Zhou's wine. Liu begs Ma to let him go to avenge his family but Ma refuses. Ma then draws out the fake gun he confiscated from the thief earlier and Liu, in fear, pulls the trigger and spends the last bullet left on the former. Ma bleeds profusely and feels faint, lying on the ground. As policemen discover the crime and rush over to apprehend Liu, Ma is shown to suddenly stand upright and walk away with his recovered gun, apparently unhurt from the wounds and euphoric at finding his lost weapon. It is left ambiguous if this is the hallucination
Hallucination
A hallucination, in the broadest sense of the word, is a perception in the absence of a stimulus. In a stricter sense, hallucinations are defined as perceptions in a conscious and awake state in the absence of external stimuli which have qualities of real perception, in that they are vivid,...
of a dying Ma.
Cast
- Jiang WenJiang WenJiang Wen is a Chinese film actor and director. As a director, he is sometimes grouped with the "sixth generation" that emerged in the 1990s. Jiang is also well known internationally as an actor, having starred with Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's debut film Red Sorghum...
as Ma Shan, a smalltown policeman who wakes up one day to find his gun missing - Ning JingNing Jing-Filmography:-External links:***...
as Li Xiaomeng, a resident of the town, Ma's first love - Wu Yujuan as Han Xiaoyun, Ma's wife, a teacher at a local school
- Shi LiangShi LiangShi Liang may refer to:* Shi Liang , Chinese female politician, the first Minister of Justice of the PRC* Shi Liang , general of Ming Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang...
as Zhou Xiaogang, a local businessman
Reception
The Missing Gun first premiered during the Beijing Student Film FestivalBeijing Student Film Festival
Beijing Student Film Festival abbreviated SIFF, first held in 1993, organized by Beijing Normal University and Beijing Municipal Bureau of Radio, Film and Television...
on 21 April 2002, where it clinched the award for Best Debut Film. A pioneer digital screening was then held in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
on 28 April, marking the first use of digital cinema
Digital cinema
Digital cinema refers to the use of digital technology to distribute and project motion pictures. A movie can be distributed via hard drives, optical disks or satellite and projected using a digital projector instead of a conventional film projector...
in China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
. After its official release in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
on 8 May, the film recorded more than ¥
Renminbi
The Renminbi is the official currency of the People's Republic of China . Renminbi is legal tender in mainland China, but not in Hong Kong or Macau. It is issued by the People's Bank of China, the monetary authority of the PRC...
1 million in box office
Box office
A box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through an unblocked hole through a wall or window, or at a wicket....
within a week of release, topping The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. It was subsequently selected for the 59th Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
, though it failed to clinch any awards.
The film drew criticism from the Chinese
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
National Language and Character Committee for using the Sichuan dialect
Sichuan dialect
Sichuanese Mandarin , commonly known as Sichuanese, Szechuanese or Szechwanese , is a branch of Southwestern Mandarin, spoken mainly in Sichuan and Chongqing, which was part of Sichuan until 1997, and the adjacent regions of their neighboring provinces, such as Hubei, Guizhou, Yunnan, Hunan and...
instead of Mandarin Chinese. The committee's director Yuan Guiren
Yuan Guiren
Yuan Guiren is a Chinese academic and the current Minister of Education in the People's Republic of China.Yuan is a native of Guzhen County in Anhui. He is a Beijing Normal University alumni and a former president of the same institution. He is also currently a member of the 17th CPC Central...
disapproved Jiang Wen
Jiang Wen
Jiang Wen is a Chinese film actor and director. As a director, he is sometimes grouped with the "sixth generation" that emerged in the 1990s. Jiang is also well known internationally as an actor, having starred with Gong Li in Zhang Yimou's debut film Red Sorghum...
's selection of dialects as language media for two consecutive films (the previous being Devils on the Doorstep), claiming that such a choice misguides the audience on the importance of learning Standard Chinese
Standard Chinese
Standard Chinese, or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
, a standard adopted by the Chinese government.
Awards and nominations
- Beijing Student Film FestivalBeijing Student Film FestivalBeijing Student Film Festival abbreviated SIFF, first held in 1993, organized by Beijing Normal University and Beijing Municipal Bureau of Radio, Film and Television...
, 2002- Best Directorial Debut
- Golden Trailer AwardsGolden Trailer AwardsThe Golden Trailer Awards is an annual awards show that honors achievements in motion picture marketing, including film trailers, posters and television advertisements.- Overview :...
, 2003- Best Foreign Film (nominated)
DVD release
A DVD featuring subtitles in EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
was released on 4 May 2004 and distributed by Sony Pictures Entertainment
Sony Pictures Entertainment
Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc. is the television and film production/distribution unit of Japanese multinational technology and media conglomerate Sony...
in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.