“Only the River Flows” follows a strange 1995 Chinese murder investigation

Chinese director Wei Shujun’s murder mystery “Only the River Flows” upends the familiar investigation plot, for his Chief of the Criminal Police Ma Zhe will follow one frustrating lead after another. His well-intentioned, serious inquiries will leave Zhe frustrated with self-doubt, surreal nightmares, and professional humiliation.

Set in 1995 in rural Peishui City, Jiangdong Province in southeast China, the pervasive rain adds to the dreary environment. As the responsible detective and central character Ma Zhe, actor Zhu Yilong’s perplexed look of discomfort perfectly conveys the bewildering nature of one dead end after another. Slowly, methodically, Zhe pursues the case at the insistent goading of his superior who both threatens and cajoles Zhe in his efforts. The bureaucratic structure takes its toll on Zhe’s fragile emotional equilibrium.

Director Wei Shujun says in press notes that the catalyst for his adapting Yu Hua’s novella was his desire to understand the 1990s decade in which he was born. Moreover, he considered the story “an enigmatic reflection on fate, or even a portrayal of social relationships through the depiction of multiple characters.” Wei regards that time period as a solid predictor of today’s China, though individuals were “generally simpler than they are today. Most still believed in a certain collectivist supremacy, so self-concern or the expression of individual feelings didn’t come naturally.” In fact, the police supervisor invokes collective honor in the opening and several subsequent scenes. Most of the dozen plus police are not individualized, wearing uniforms and remaining silent throughout the film. The negative impact on Zhe of this communal structure increases day by day.

Without disclosing who it is, the closing, direct look at the camera adds a final, unnerving confrontation and exclamation point to director Wei’s opening quotation from Albert Camus, “There’s no understanding fate; therefore I choose to play the part of fate. I wear the foolish, unintelligible face of a professional god.” In Mandarin with English subtitles, “Only the River Flows” screens at Webster University’s Winifred Moore auditorium Friday, August 16 through Sunday, August 18, at 7:30 each of those evenings. For more information, you may visit the film series website.