Consisting of the complete filmscript, vocabulary annotations, grammatical notes, and exercises, this study guide turns the Chinese film, Under the Bridge into a powerful teaching tool. With its focus on the down-to-earth, colloquial, high-frequency vocabulary and discourse patterns of authentic spoken Chinese, Ling’s book addresses a need neglected by most traditional textbooks. Although the guide has been prepared for students who have completed two years of Chinese, it is flexible enough to accommodate a broad range of language levels. Its user-friendly features include indexes, summary vocabulary lists, vocabulary items ranked into three levels of priority, bottom-of-page vocabulary annotations, English explanations of grammar points with sample sentences, and complex and simplified characters on facing pages. An excellent film on its own merits, Under the Bridge tells the story of a lost generation struggling with unemployment, crime, and psychological scars as they try to rebuild their lives amid the rubble of the Cultural Revolution.

Vivian LING is Professor of East Asian Studies at Oberlin College.