Little Moth

April. 03,2008      
Rating:
6.4
Rent / Buy
Trailer Synopsis Cast

A couple purchases an eleven-year old girl who cannot walk, with the intention of using her to earn money through begging.

Reviews

Cubussoli
2008/04/03

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

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Platicsco
2008/04/04

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

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Zandra
2008/04/05

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

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Logan
2008/04/06

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

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Joseph Prendergast
2008/04/07

"Little Moth" is an extraordinary film about the life of a little girl in emerging China. The performance of Zhao Huihui in the role of Xiao Ezi, is one of the most amazing performances by a child actress I have ever seen. From her first appearance in the film, Zhao projected a poetic insight into her circumstances which never flinched, no matter how horribly the truth manifested itself. The truth was relentless, and indifferent. Zhao Huihui, I speak to you from from my heart and from the comfort of my home in American. I extend my hand of friendship to you and to all of China. I do not think I will sleep tonight. I was so deeply moved by your performance, and all of your supporting actors. Thank you all for reminding us all of the simple necessity of compassion.

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dGenerateFilms
2008/04/08

Luo Jiang and Guihua, a poor, middle-aged couple with few prospects, decide to buy an 11- year-old girl, Xiao Ezi (aka "Little Moth"), for $140 in rural China. Xiao Ezi's life is in peril, as she is forced to earn money for her new parents as a beggar while suffering from a blood disease that leaves her unable to walk. Her greedy adoptive father, Luo Jiang, refuses to buy her medicine, while Guihua's growing maternal affection wracks her with guilt. After a run-in with local extortionists, the three flee into the territory of the unsavory Mr. Yang, whose one-armed boy Xiao Chun is also forced to beg. Inevitably the grownups take turns taking advantage of each other, giving the children a rare opportunity to develop a protective bond with one another.With virtually no budget, a hand-held digital camera and a cast of non-professionals, Peng Tao turns the sordid street life of small town China into a chain-reaction tale of human cruelty and unforgettable suspense. LITTLE MOTH "melds the anger and storytelling scope of Dickens, the doc-influenced immediacy and sensitive gaze of the Dardenne brothers, and the best tendencies of recent Chinese cinema." (Robert Koehler, Variety).

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