Ash is Purest White

"By the end, the transformation of China is more compelling than Qiao's love for Bin, but watching both unfold over time is continually thought-provoking, given the ephemerality of whole cities, much less love affairs."

"The work has its intellectually ponderous moments but is ultimately saved by Jia’s muse and wife, Zhao Tao, who surpasses herself in a role of mesmerizing complexity."

"Still, the film is an arresting and ambitious portrait of a nation how it is now, and how it so recently was."

"It feels like a gripping parable for the vanity of human wishes, and another impassioned portrait of national malaise."

"This is a movie about how time and circumstance conspire to make dazed, restless wanderers of us all."

"The performances of the two leads are riveting."

"Few film-makers are as observant or as poetic as Jia is about the passing of time."