TIFF 2020 Review: The Best is Yet to Come – “Compelling”

Lacking a college education and residential status Han Dong (White K) tries to get a job as a reporter in Beijing

Without the necessary education and experience, it is only through some cunning that Han Dong is able to get a job as an intern at Jingcheng Daily and have a star reporter decide to mentor him.  Dong proves capable and branches out to cover his own stories; it looks like he and his girlfriend will be finally able to leave behind their financially strapped lives.  However, the question arises as to whether Dong has the ability to separate his personal feelings from his exposés.  The dream job might not be as perfect as originally thought.

It is fun witnessing the clever antics of Dong whether it is using mannequin arms to get rid of water on top of a tarp or getting himself inside a newspaper newsroom claiming that he is owed money for an article that does not exist; he has an uncanny knack for being at the right place at the right time when it comes to getting access to insider information.  Not completely sure how much has been embellished from the true-life events but the story is compelling though at times feels like it is checking off the journalistic tropes.  One does not feel completely invested like with All the President’s Men and Spotlight. It is a confident directorial debut for Wang Jing and proves that he has learned much from working with Jia Zhang-ke.

Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer who currently resides in Canada; he can be found at LinkedIn.