SIFF Film Preview: Shanghai Trance
By Melanie McGanney, Jun 16th, 2008 | In Art
"Only connect... " was E.M. Forster's gentle instruction appearing on the opening page of his novel, Howards End. Written about the challenges of human communication in early 20th century England, the directive resonates on into 21st century Shanghai, a ragingly pubescent city -- a city whose physical development outpaces the social and emotional maturity of its residents.
Shanghai Trance, Dutch Director David Verbeek's second feature film, examines the toll of Shanghai's breakneck industrial, commercial, and physical growth on the lives of the city's young residents, each trying to make sense of their volatile environment.
"When I set out to tell the narrative of Shanghai's youth, I found that there was no single paradigm to rely on, so I shot a film in three layers of love stories," says Verbeek. The romances of these three couples -- a DJ and club dancer, a shiftless dreamer and his school girl crush, and a business-woman and a laowei architect -- weave through the alleys and skyscrapers, nightclubs, and family homes of Shanghai but ultimately dead-end in a scowl of immaturity.
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