Red Light Revolution

RED LIGHT REVOLUTION is the titillating tale of an entrepreneur in the new Beijing. The Chinese marketplace has changed. It used to be that shopkeepers sold necessities; now they peddle desires. Shunzi is a pudgy, down-on-his luck cab driver who can't keep his mouth shut long enough to keep a job. His wife kicks him out of the house, so he's left with only his dog. A stint selling diet products doesn't pan out, but at least he meets a nice girl named Lili. Then Shunzi runs into Jiang, a flush-looking former schoolmate who gives him a tip: sex toys are a hot commodity, and he can set him up with his own shop. The skeptical Shunzi tags along to meet Jiang's “investor” Iggy, a crazy Japanese artist with a thing for orange. Soon Shunzi and Lili are running their very own mom-and-pop sex shop, “Dream of the Red Light.” Like bats, bizarre customers come out at night when their needs are greatest. With sales flat and Iggy threatening, Lili and Shunzi are about to quit. But Shunzi discovers an astonishingly potent herbal medicine that makes everyone sit up and take notice. (In Mandarin with subtitles) – B.B.