View source for Postmen in the Mountains

{{short description|1999 Chinese film}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Postmen in the Mountains
| image          = Postmen in the Mountains.jpg
| native_name    = {{Infobox Chinese/Chinese|child=yes|hide=no|header=none| s         = 那山那人那狗
 | t          = 那山那人那狗
 | p         = Nàshān nàrén nàgǒu}}
| director       = [[Huo Jianqi]]
| producer       = Kang Jianmin
| writer         = Si Wu
| based_on       = {{Based on|"Postmen in the Mountains"|[[Peng Jianmin]]}}
| cinematography = [[Zhao Lei (cinematographer)|Zhao Lei]]
| music          = [[Wang Xiaofeng]]
| starring       = [[Teng Rujun]]<br />[[Liu Ye (actor)|Liu Ye]]
| distributor    = 
| country        = China
| released       = {{Film date|1999}}
| runtime        = 93 minutes
| language       = Mandarin
}}
'''''Postmen in the Mountains''''' ({{Zh|c=那山那人那狗| p=Nàshān nàrén nàgǒu | l=That Mountain, That Man, That Dog}}) is a [[1999 in film|1999]] Chinese [[film]] directed by [[Huo Jianqi]]. It is based on the [[short story]] of the same name by Peng Jianming ({{lang|zh-Hans|彭见明}}).

''Postmen in the Mountains'' tells the story of an old man ([[Teng Rujun]]) who for years served as the postman for rural mountain communities. Retiring, he hands over his job to his son ([[Liu Ye (actor)|Liu Ye]]), but accompanies him on the first tour. Together, they deliver mail on a 230 ''[[Li (length)|li]]'' (about 115&nbsp;km) long walking route, into the rural heart of China and in the process the son learns from the mails' recipients more about the father he hardly knew.

It was filmed on location in Suining County and Dao County, in southwestern and southern [[Hunan]]. A portion of the film takes place in a village of the [[Dong people]], including an evening festival featuring a ''[[lusheng]]'' dance.

==Plot==
The film is set in the mountainous regions of the western [[Hunan]] province in the early 1980s.  At the film's start, a young man ([[Liu Ye (actor)|Liu Ye]]) begins his first journey as a [[postman]] at the mountainous rural areas of the aforesaid regions.  His father ([[Teng Rujun]]), a veteran postman forced to retire due to a bad knee, decides to accompany him together with the family's faithful dog, Buddy.

The father walks his son through the nitty-gritty of the job, and the son realizes the mailman job entails not just the sending of letters.  He witnesses his father's deep friendship with the villagers, and participates in a wedding celebration with the [[Dong people]].  The film includes a number of memory flashbacks, as well as many [[Pop music|pop song]]s played on the son's [[transistor radio]] (including [[Michael Learns to Rock]]'s "That's Why You Go Away", which is an [[anachronism]] given that the film is set in the early 1980s).

==Reception==
''Postmen'' was well received both abroad and at home in China where it won both Best Film and Best Actor (for [[Teng Rujun]]) at the [[Golden Rooster Awards]] in 1999.

===Awards and nominations===
*[[Golden Rooster Awards]], [[1999 in film|1999]]
**Best Actor – [[Teng Rujun]]
**Best Film
*[[Awards of the Japanese Academy]], [[2002 in film|2002]]
**Best Foreign Film (nominated)
*[[Mainichi Film Concours]], [[2002 in film|2002]]
**Best Foreign Language Film
*[[Montréal World Film Festival]], [[2002 in film|2002]]
**People's Choice Award 	
**Grand Prix des Amériques (nominated)

==External links==
*{{IMDb title|id=210916}}
*{{rotten-tomatoes|id=postmen_in_the_mountains}}

{{Huo Jianqi}}
{{Navboxes 
|title = Awards for ''Postmen in the Mountains''
|list =
{{Golden Rooster Award for Best Picture}}
{{Mainichi Film Award for Foreign Film Best One Award}}
{{IFFI Silver Peacock - Special Jury Award and Special Mention|state=collapsed}}
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Postmen In The Mountains}}

[[Category:1999 films]]
[[Category:1999 drama films]]
[[Category:1990s Mandarin-language films]]
[[Category:1990s road movies]]
[[Category:Chinese drama films]]
[[Category:Films based on short fiction]]
[[Category:Films directed by Huo Jianqi]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Si Wu]]
[[Category:Golden Rooster Best Film recipients]]
[[Category:Films set in Hunan]]