The World

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The World

1991

2h 20m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

74%

Tomatometer

46 Reviews

66%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

At the Beijing World Park, a theme park that displays small versions of famous world monuments, one of the performers, Tao (Zhao Tao), is dating a guard named Taisheng (Taisheng Chen). However, they have a difficult bond, full of jealousy and miscommunication. While Tao forms friendships with other performers, Taisheng develops a fascination with Qun (Yi-qun Wang), a woman trying to join her husband in France. Despite their differences, Tao and Taisheng attempt to continue their relationship.

Critics Consensus

Though perhaps too slowly paced and long, The World offers an intriguing glimpse into China's modernization and the growing ennui of some of its people.

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Richard Brody

The New Yorker

05/18/2020

Jia's tenderness for his characters is infused with a quiet rage: as the wide-screen views freeze them in a confining emptiness, dead zones of action and dialogue suggest a land where imagination itself has been suppressed.

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G. Allen Johnson

San Francisco Chronicle

09/16/2005

4/4

It's a heartbreaking, beautiful movie that gains strength from its deep characterizations.

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Tom Keogh

Seattle Times

09/09/2005

3/4

Its rewards come with patience and concentration.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

1d

... a Beijing of immigrants, figuratively and literally, as the employees have all come from the provinces and beyond. Yet as they wander across borders and cultures of this international Disneyland, they don’t seem to actually live anywhere.

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

02/25/2025

3.5/4

Jia’s lively metaphor turns the World Park into a hollow place where workers remain exploited and confined, leaving them with almost no identity outside their constraints.

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Nathanael Hood

Unseen Films

05/13/2020

9/10

Has the kind of setting that would make the Surrealists weep with joy and envy.

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David K

@RT61474040 02/06/2025

it is slowly paced and could have been tightened up a little bit. However, the point is the characters' lives moving from mild, meaningless engagement to their isolation and loneliness. Not a happy movie.

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11/16/2014

O que resta a essas personagens, e talvez a nós cidadãos do mundo globalizado, é tocar da melhor maneira possível o seu caminho irresoluto e limitado, cujo maior regozijo é o escape ilusório proporcionado pelas imagens do kitsh da globalização. Leia mais: http://cinema-mon-amour31.webnode.com/news/o-mundo-shijie-de-zhang-ke-jia-china-2004-/

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08/20/2014

Review In A Nutshell: I just couldn't connect with the characters or the problems they are going through. The film also is paced slowly, which I wouldn't have minded if its content delivered something care-worthy. Though I was pleased with the natural performances from the cast and the film's musical score was memorable. This is a film I certainly need to watch at least once more as I am aware that it has something important or worthy to offer.

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08/20/2014

Review In A Nutshell: I just couldn't connect with the characters or the problems they are going through. The film also is paced slowly, which I wouldn't have minded if its content delivered something care-worthy. Though I was pleased with the natural performances from the cast and the film's musical score was memorable. This is a film I certainly need to watch at least once more as I am aware that it has something important or worthy to offer.

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02/02/2014

Friendship and romance backstage at the Beijing theme park THE WORLD. There's some good stuff here but it has difficulty emerging from the rather monotone presentation. The opening scene and protagonist Tao 's friendship with a Russian performer are the highlights.

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12/11/2013

a slow-paced sort-of-early- masterpiece by a really great director. a truly minimalist masterwork! looking forward to A TOUCH OF SIN!

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Zhang-Ke Jia

Director

Tao Zhao

Tao

Taisheng Chen

Taisheng

Jing Jue

Wei

Xiang Wan

Youyou

Liu Juan

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Synopsis

At the Beijing World Park, a theme park that displays small versions of famous world monuments, one of the performers, Tao (Zhao Tao), is dating a guard named Taisheng (Taisheng Chen). However, they have a difficult bond, full of jealousy and miscommunication. While Tao forms friendships with other performers, Taisheng develops a fascination with Qun (Yi-qun Wang), a woman trying to join her husband in France. Despite their differences, Tao and Taisheng attempt to continue their relationship.

Director: Zhang-Ke Jia
Screenwriter: Zhang-Ke Jia
Distributor: Zeitgeist Films
Production Co: Office Kitano
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Chinese
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 3, 1991, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Jul 1, 2005
Release Date (DVD): Feb 14, 2006
Box Office (Gross USA): $3.6K
Runtime: 2h 20m