David Farnor | On 10, Feb 2021

“This whole street was once full of houses. Now my house is the only one left.” That’s the sound of Cathy Yan’s award-winning debut finally getting a worldwide online release.

The Birds of Prey helmer’s first feature is a satire in which a baffling nationwide mystery connects a disparate group of characters in contemporary Shanghai, as thousands of dead pigs float down the river.

Based on remarkable true events, the film tells a universal human story set against the backdrop of globalisation, drastic social change and increasing wealth inequality.

Starring Vivian Wu (Away, The Last Emperor, The Joy Luck Club), Mason Lee (Lucy, The Hangover Pt II), Zazie Beetz (Atlanta, Nine Days), Meng Li (The Bad Kids, The Guillotines, Young Love Lost), Haoyu Yang (The Wandering Earth) and David Rysdahl (The Family, Nine Days), the film premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2018, where it won a Special Jury Award for Ensemble Acting.

Now, it’s being released online exclusively by MUBI on Friday 12th February. It joins hundreds of other movies on the subscription service, which costs £9.99 a month and curates a library of world cinema, classics and other arthouse titles. You can see our guide to the best films on MUBI here – or for weekly updates on what’s new, coming soon and being removed on MUBI UK, click here.

Here’s the trailer for Dead Pigs:

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