Caught up in each other, Qiaoqiao and Bin enjoyed all that their city had to offer, singing and dancing. Until one day, Bin finds himself wanting to try his luck in a bigger place than Datong, and leaves without any notice. Some time later, Qiaoqiao decides to go look for him. Traversing all of his past films, Jia Zhang-Ke delivers an epic look at a country going through profound transformation. Spanning two decades, the film offers a new perspective on contemporary China as well as individual experiences in a climate of sweeping social change.
"The film spans quite a number of years, and you might think of it as a review of contemporary China. It’s only when we look back that we realize how much has been forgotten over the last twenty years, and sounds in particular have faded the most. If we want to imagine the Tang Dynasty, more than a thousand years ago, we can look at its surviving buildings and paintings, and the unchanged mountains, rivers, lakes and seas, and visualize how the ancients lived at that time. But it’s hard to imagine the sound of the Tang Dynasty. Music, however, can now be passed down. Songs from different eras can take us back to their time, like a code or key to unlock the past." (Jia Zhang-ke)