Review of “Only The River Flows” – a crime thriller full of secrets

For his part, Ma doggedly pursues the evidence trail even after calmly arresting the prime suspect. A handbag found next to the body puts him on another trail. But potential suspects keep coming forward, wanting to make their point before they are found and thrown into the procedural wrecker. They all realize that if they become a person of interest in such a case, they will simply be steamrolled by the state.

The compassionate Ma seems to be genuinely searching for the truth and not for a scapegoat. But the number of deaths keeps rising. Instead of bringing order to the world, he seems to be causing even more chaos. It's not just the investigation that is faltering. Ma and his wife receive disturbing news. Dream sequences force themselves upon them. Reality itself seems to be slipping away. Meanwhile, the rain continues to pour down.

If it seems to Ma that solving the case is unattainable, it is also difficult for the audience. But Only the river flows is very atmospheric. Shot mostly on 16mm, the film has a very cinematic feel to it, with glossy shadows and authentic-looking scratches on some frames. When we first meet them, Ma's team is moving their unit into a disused cinema, blowing dust off clunky old film projectors and finding discarded reels of martial arts films in odd corners.

Does this eccentric base of operations suggest that their work is merely performative? It certainly got me thinking about films. The constant rain and the nagging feeling of being one step behind the truth fit Sevena 1995 film that could theoretically be playing in a US cinema on the other side of the world while Ma sits huddled in his office (a converted film projection booth).

With its remote location and lack of cultural features familiar to Western viewers, Only the river flows could take place in the 1970s as well as in the 1990s. The sporadic use of Beethoven’s sad Moonlight Sonata on the soundtrack only adds to the sense of timelessness. But it might be helpful to think of it less as a Chinese puzzle box to be solved definitively and more as an enigmatic mystery to immerse yourself in. First, take a deep breath.

Only the river flows will be in cinemas from August 16th.

Preview: EIFF 2024

The Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) is still finding its feet after a financial implosion at the end of 2022. But this year's 77th edition is definitely off to a strong start with British premieres of the addiction drama The Outrun with Saoirse Ronan (above) and sci-fi slasher Alien: Romulus. Experienced film provocateur Gaspar Noé is also in town for a career-spanning conversation.

The EIFF takes place from August 15 to 21. Graeme Virtue is a film and television critic.

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