Mark Reviews Movies: THE WILD GOOSE LAKE

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Review by Mark Dujsik | April 9, 2020

The plot of The Wild Goose Lake is a simple one: A gangster is on the run from other gangsters who want to kill him and cops who want to catch him—or kill him, if it works out that way. Working from the mold of noir films of the past, writer/director Diao Yinan knows that one keeps the plot of such material simple, because plot is secondary. It's style that matters most.

Hence, we get a basic story, told in a winding and often elliptical way. We're sometimes uncertain where we are within the schematic of the narrative, but that's part of the film's formal trickery.

The central plan between the anti-hero and his accomplice is muted by the sound of passing train. Other key moments are often kept off-screen, such as during a chase/shootout through a towering apartment complex, in which characters are represented by silhouettes on the walls and some killings are only signified by not-too-distant gunshots (and, in one moment, a splash of blood falling on someone's face from above). Mystery and suspense come from such techniques, yes, but above all else, they're for the style—to bolster the story and for its own sake.

Diao sets his tale of a long chase, plenty of schemes, a fair number of betrayals, and a doomed man attempting to make one good decision, even if it's his last, in the city of Wuhan, China (a bustling metropolis of distinct socioeconomic divides—with no sign of the reason the city has made headlines as of late). Zenong (Hu Ge) is the gangster, recently out of prison, whose crime family gets on the wrong side of another.

In a race to steal motorcycles, the opposing family stages an ambush, and Zenong shoots and kills a cop while escaping. The police set a reward for Zenong's arrest, and he enlists Aiai (Gwei Lun Mei) to track down the wife (played by Wan Qian) he left years ago, hoping that she and their son can benefit from the reward money.

Diao creates a world of dim rooms, neon-lit exteriors, and the overwhelming darkness of untouched nature, illuminated by approaching headlights. It's a place of grime, doom, and desperation, where everyone's scrambling to survive. The story of The Wild Goose Lake might not be much, but that hardly matters, because it's told with such stylish verve.

Note: The Wild Goose Lake is available to watch online through Film Movement Plus. You can choose to support a local independent theater (e.g., the Gene Siskel Film Center in Chicago) with your rental purchase. Half of proceeds from the rental will go to the theater. For more information and to access the film, click here.

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