The Old Well  (1986)

The Old Well (Lao jing) (China, 1986)

Directed by Wu Tianming.

In China’s rugged interior region a village struggles to find a water supply.  Shooting against stunning mountain backdrops, director Wu Tianming brings an almost ethnographic attention to the villagers for whom the dangerous, sometimes deadly endeavor has become a collective obsession.  Woven into the story are the romantic entanglements of a prominent well-digger played by then Wu protégé Zhang Yimou.

Screenwriter: Zheng Yi.  Cinematographer: Chen Wancai, Zhang Yimou.  Cast: Zhang Yimou, Lv Liping, Liang Yujin, Xie Yan, Niu Xingli.