A group of Chinese laborers must deal with the ups and downs of their country's new free-market economy in this neorealistic drama. When a worker at a state-run shipyard is laid off from his job, he joins forces with several of his friends who have also been put out of work in the midst of China's economic transformation. The laborers open a renovation company, and while the business gets off to a promising start, the partners run afoul of defaulting customers and dishonest contractors, and soon they have trouble covering their bills or making their payments to the bank. When one of the partners wins the lottery, he uses the money to bail out the company, but soon he and his partners must decide how much longer they can survive on good luck. Directed by Wang Guangli, Go For Broke! was shown in competition at the 2001 Rotterdam Film Festival.
by Mark Deming
synopsis
