Under the Radar DVD of the Week: 'Beijing Bicycle'
This week, the oddest DVD to appear on release lists is:
“Beijing Bicycle”
There is poignancy and truth and rawness in “Beijing Bicycle” (due out on DVD Tuesday), and much like the Italian classic “The Bicycle Thief” the film is an unvarnished gem that shows us struggles of the poor in a country roiling with poverty, oppression and dim promise.
This 2001 tale, told in Mandarin with English subtitles, follows a 19-year-old country boy, Guei, who moves to bustling Beijing and lands a job with a bicycle delivery service. Astride a company-owned two-wheeler, Guei works conscientiously in hopes of paying back the company and making the bike his own.
But just before he’s due to make his final payment, the bicycle is stolen and Guei is fired. So off he goes on an arduous, surprise-filled quest to find his bike, reclaim it and get his job back.


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