China Synopsis
大同
Once the thriving capital of Imperial China, the city of Datong now lies in near ruins. Not only is it the most polluted city in the country, it is also crippled by decrepit infrastructure and even shakier economic prospects. But Mayor Geng Tanbo plans to change all that, announcing a bold, new plan to return Datong to its former glory, the cultural haven it was some 1,600 years ago. Such declarations, however, come at a devastatingly high cost. Thousands of homes are to be bulldozed, and a half-million of its residents (30 percent of Datong’s total population) will be relocated under his watch. Whether he succeeds depends entirely on his ability to calm swarms of furious workers and an increasingly perturbed ruling elite. The Chinese Mayor captures, with remarkable access, a man and, by extension, a country leaping frantically into an increasingly unstable future.
The 2014–2016 China Window
143 China films released in this three-year window, ranked here by audience rating. The Chinese Mayor sits at position #6.
The 2010s China Landscape
Catalog density by release year in the 2010s. Highlighted year (yellow) is when The Chinese Mayor premiered. 515 total titles in this decade from China.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #103 of 946 China films indexed here (89th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is +1.2 points above the China average of 6.7/10.
Among China Documentary productions specifically: #10 of 52 (top 19%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | China |
|---|---|
| Original Language | Chinese |
| Production Companies | 赵琦工作室 |
| Runtime | 1h 29m |
| Release Date | March 6, 2015 |
| IMDb | tt4056808 |