'Marriage' of inconvenience may make a star of Yu Nan

Starring Yu Nan. Directed by Wang Quan An. Not rated, but it includes scenes of emotional cruelty and a bloody attempt at suicide. At Landmark Midtown Art Cinema. In Mandarin, with English subtitles. 1 hour, 36 minutes.

Bottom line: A new Chinese star.

Tuya is in love with her husband, but she wants a divorce. Her husband loves her, but he seconds the motion.

"Tuya's Marriage," the surprise winner of the top prize at the 2007 Berlin Film Festival, is a strong addition to the burgeoning canon of China's so-called Sixth Generation filmmakers.

But while many of those directors, from Zhang Ke Jia to Xiaoshuai Wang, make a point of going against the Fifth Generation grain, Wang Quan An's peasant tale of Inner Mongolia seems to embrace that movement from the 1980s and '90s.

Anchored by a charismatic performance by Yu Nan that recalls a young Gong Li, "Tuya's Marriage" seems like an homage to the early Zhang Yimou-Gong efforts such as "Red Sorghum" or "The Story of Qiu Ju."

Tuya and her husband, Bater, are sheepherders on the vast steppes of Mongolia. Bater was permanently disabled while trying to dig a well so that the family, which includes two young children, wouldn't have to go as far for water.

Tuya is unable to support the entire family, so she must find another husband —- one who is very broad-minded, as caring for the ex-husband is part of the deal.

Though a heartbreaking film, there are certainly moments of quirky humor. One suitor, her old classmate, owns a Mercedes, which he parades about to impress her. (She owns a horse and a camel.) Another suitor, whose wife is constantly leaving him for other men before returning, vows to get a divorce and marry Tuya, and even begins a well-digging project of his own.

The strain of courtship puts the family through the wringer —- Bater attempts suicide, and Tuya raises the children and tends to her herd, so there's not much time to be romanced —- but the truth is it doesn't really matter whom she chooses. Tuya is clearly her own woman, and she is ultimately only accountable to herself.

Wang directs with admirable economy, but the anchor of the film is Yu, who, as Tuya, conveys strength, emotional subtlety and sharp wit. She could be the next breakout Chinese star; she is fluent in English, is represented by the powerful Creative Artists Agency in Los Angeles and appeared in "Speed Racer."