In the City of Sylvia

Directed by Jose Luis Guerin, starring Xavier Lafitte, Pilar Lopez de Ayala (pictured)

This enigmatic, contemplative film has attained a cult status on the Edinburgh film festival circuit for its uncompromising dedication to capturing the look, the detail and the essence of a moment. There are perhaps three or four lines of dialogue in the entire film. A young man returns to Strasbourg in search of a beautiful young woman called Sylvia, with whom he had an affair some years before. He hangs around, people-watching. Then he sees a woman he thinks is her - or is it? The movie's growing band of admirers have been captivated by its mesmeric quality.

(China Daily 06/18/2008 page20)