I Am Not Madame Bovary

The latest film from Xiaogang Feng, one of Asia’s most celebrated contemporary filmmakers, is a shrewd social satire. Provincial Li Xuelian conspires with her husband to get a ‘fake’ divorce so each can claim an apartment, but soon discovers his betrayal: he has married another woman and refuses to invalidate the divorce. Humiliated, Li sets out to clear her name, forced to face countless officials on all bureaucratic levels. Feng explores the conflicts in a society struggling to shift from bribery-based to lawful government with prodigious cinematic insight. Winner of Best Film and Best Actress Awards at the 64th San Sebastian International Film Festival, and the International Critics Award at the 41st Toronto Film Festival.