Queens of the Qing Dynasty

Queens of the Qing Dynasty is a Canadian drama film, directed by Ashley McKenzie and released in 2022.[1] The film stars Sarah Walker as Star, a troubled teenager who has been hospitalized following a suicide attempt, and Ziyin Zheng as An, a genderqueer volunteer at the hospital whose companionship and friendship helps Star to feel less isolated as they bond over their shared uncertainties about their futures.[2]

Queens of the Qing Dynasty
Directed byAshley McKenzie
Written byAshley McKenzie
Produced byBritt Kerr
Nelson McDonald
Ashley McKenzie
StarringSarah Walker
Ziyin Zheng
CinematographyScott Moore
Edited byAshley McKenzie
Scott Moore
Music byCecile Believe
Yu Su
Production
company
Hi-Vis Film
Release date
  • February 15, 2022 (2022-02-15) (Berlinale)
Running time
122 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

Walker is a first-time actress, who auditioned for a role in McKenzie's prior film Werewolf; although she was not cast in that film, she and McKenzie became friends and Queens was based in part on her own experiences during that time.[3]

The film premiered on February 15, 2022, in the Encounters program at the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival.[4]

Cast
  • Sarah Walker as Star
  • Ziyin Zheng as An
  • Wendy Wishart as Gail
  • Jana Reddick as social worker
  • Yao Xue as Violet
  • Cherlena “Sassi” Brake as Cher
  • Reg MacDonald as charge nurse
  • Carl Getto as psychiatrist
  • Nidhin KH as boyfriend
  • Rony Robson as OR nurse

Critical response

Jared Mobarak of The Film Stage positively reviewed the film, writing that "I wouldn’t go so far as saying Queens of the Qing Dynasty is an acquired taste. You simply need to be prepared that the words “swift” or “kinetic” aren't descriptors I'd use. It's purely about the characters as well as the place where it's set since “fun” is getting drunk at a Chinese restaurant, not some big city club. Because while Star and An fantasize and joke about wishing they could become trophy wives of old, their roads are not paved in gold. Having each other sitting shotgun, however, does make the trip a whole lot brighter. And experiencing their queer characters candidly existing on-screen without the usual miserabilism of external abuse looming large (their internal hardships and uncertainty lends enough drama) is reason enough to follow along."[1]

For The Movable Fest, Stephen Saito wrote that "McKenzie certainly has an aesthetically distinctive vision as a filmmaker, but what shouldn’t be so unique yet is remains her rare ability to neither look down on her characters or make them subjects of pity when working their way out of dire straits, following Star and An into their private spaces without ever feeling as if she’s encroaching and allowing Walker, Zheng and even those with the smallest bit parts suggest far bigger lives off-screen than the glimpse you get will afford."[2]

References
  1. Jared Mobarak, "Berlin Review: Queens of the Qing Dynasty is a Character-Focused Look at Nonconformity". The Film Stage, February 24, 2022.
  2. Stephen Saito, "Berlinale 2022 Review: A Connection Defies Description in the Formally Daring 'Queens of the Qing Dynasty'". The Movable Fest, February 16, 2022.
  3. Caitlin Quinlan, "Ashley McKenzie on Her Romantic Second Feature ‘Queens of the Qing Dynasty’". Variety, February 14, 2022.
  4. Kate Erbland, David Ehrlich and Eric Kohn, "Berlin 2022: The 10 Most Exciting Films at This Year’s Festival". IndieWire, February 9, 2022.
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