Suzhou River

The Videographer is hired to record Meimei’s performances as a mermaid in a large water tank at the Happy Tavern in Shanghai. He begins filming, capturing the atmosphere and Meimei’s graceful aquatic display. The work soon becomes the backdrop for a growing, intimate connection between them.

As filming continues, their meetings become more about shared glances and whispered conversations than instructions. The bond deepens into a quiet, tender love that blurs the line between professional and personal. The mermaid performances take on a new meaning as their feelings develop.

Meimei vanishes for several days, leaving the Videographer heartbroken and unsure if their connection was real. He waits by the tavern and in the city for her return, haunted by the absence. The void she leaves behind colors his memories of their time together.

The Videographer recalls the backstory of Mardar, a motorcycle courier, and Moudan, the daughter of a wealthy liquor importer. Their romance unfolds years earlier in Shanghai, amid danger and social divides. The tale foreshadows the darker paths that will emerge later.

Mardar is hired to drive Moudan to her aunt’s apartment, and during their rides their casual encounters blossom into love. They share secret moments away from prying eyes as social barriers tighten around them. Their romance is passionate but fragile, setting up the tragedy to come.

Mardar is drawn into a kidnapping scheme with his former lover Xiao Hong and criminal Lao B, with Moudan as the intended target. He remains oblivious to the full danger around him as the plan spirals toward violence. The arrangement tests their loyalties and foreshadows the disaster ahead.

On the criminals’ orders, Moudan is imprisoned in a warehouse while Xiao negotiates the ransom. Mardar does not realize how close she is to danger, continuing his courier life while the plot unravels. The waiting game amplifies the fear surrounding her fate.

The ransom is paid, but Lao B murders Xiao Hong, shattering any chance of a clean resolution. The criminals’ plan collapses, and Moudan’s fate grows bleaker as the power dynamics shift against her. The episode marks a brutal turning point in their lives.

Moudan, realizing her worth to her captors and her father, throws herself into the Suzhou River, an apparent death with her body never found. Mardar is arrested and imprisoned, his own future crushed by the crime’s consequences. The river scene casts a long shadow over both lovers and the city’s underworld.

Years pass and Mardar returns to Shanghai, resuming his work as a courier while continuing to search for Moudan. He moves through the city with a stubborn hope in his heart, unwilling to let go of the past. The city itself seems to carry the memory of their tragedy.

One night, Mardar encounters the Happy Tavern again and meets Meimei. He recounts his affair with Moudan to the Videographer and to Meimei, whose initial skepticism gradually softens. The tale binds the two lovers closer through shared history and mystery.

Meimei, drawn by Mardar’s vulnerability and the legend surrounding Moudan, falls in love with him. Their affair echoes a past romance and deepens the film’s meditation on love and loss. The bond between them grows even as shadows from the past linger.

Meimei becomes distraught by the weight of the past and the present, spending one more night with the Videographer before vanishing again. She leaves a note telling him that if he truly loves her, he will search for her as Mardar searched for Moudan. The Videographer, drunk on vodka, resolves not to pursue.

In the wake of Meimei’s disappearance, the Videographer drinks away his sorrow and chooses not to chase after her. The note lingers as a bittersweet challenge to love and memory. The timeline closes on a city still echoing the stories it holds beneath the surface.