Suzhou River

Time Richard Corliss

Whatever city this one is showing in...move there.

Film.com Peter Brunette

A delight to the eye, ear, and mind

LA Weekly Ella Taylor

A waterlogged little jewel of a Chinese movie that you must rush out and see at once or else.

Mr. Showbiz Michael Atkinson

Suzhou River might be more pulpy than profound, but it still sings its old song better than we've heard in years.

Portland Oregonian Kim Morgan

Seems deeply influenced by American film noir, the Western fairy tale (in this case, mermaids) and the works of Alfred Hitchcock in particular.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

A Chinese film whose simple surface belies greater mysteries.

Variety David Rooney

A compelling story of love and obsession whose progress mirrors the sinuous flow of the Shanghai waterway that supplies its title.

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

Daring and edgy, it's a German co-production (critical for avoiding censorship) that's filled with the intoxicating excitement of creating images for the screen.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

This intriguing film is the best variation on "Vertigo" since Brian DePalma's far more polished "Obsession" (1976), which ranks with the best Hitchcock knockoffs of all time.

San Francisco Chronicle Peter Stack

The film is energized by the naturalness of its characters and the way in which it plays a game of mixed signals and double illusions.

Miami Herald Marta Barber

Deliciously confusing.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

This offbeat Chinese production is at once an innovative art film, a traditional suspense yarn, and a moody voyage through Shanghai's gritty back roads.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

Casts a dreamy romantic spell that lingers pleasantly in the mind for a long time after experiencing it.

New York Daily News Jami Bernard

This Asian-flavored Hitchcock is a complicated tale with no easy answers.

The New York Times Dana Stevens

Mr. Lou lets it play on for too long. Suzhou River offers impeccable attitude and captivating atmosphere, but little emotional or intellectual impact.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Has more atmosphere than it does coherence; it's a series of floating tricks and gambits in search of a resolution. Even so, Ye's ''Vertigo'' fever is contagious.

TV Guide Ken Fox

A little too derivative of much better movies to succeed on its own. However, in the context of recent Chinese movies, it's a pretty amazing piece of work.

Village Voice J. Hoberman

A ghost story that's shot as though it were a documentary -- and a documentary that feels like a dream. Almost too fashionable for its own good.