Ash Is Purest White

Ash Is Purest White
Chinese theatrical release poster
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese江湖兒女
Simplified Chinese江湖儿女
Literal meaningSons and Daughters of Jianghu
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyinjiānghú érnǚ
Directed byJia Zhangke
Written byJia Zhangke
Starring
CinematographyÉric Gautier
Edited by
  • Matthieu Laclau
  • Xudong Lin
Music byLim Giong
Release dates
  • 11 May 2018 (2018-05-11) (Cannes)
  • 21 September 2018 (2018-09-21) (China)
Running time
136 minutes
CountryChina
Languages
Box office$12 million

Ash Is Purest White (Chinese: 江湖儿女; 'Sons and Daughters of Jianghu') is a 2018 Chinese drama written and directed by Jia Zhangke. The story is loosely based on the leader of a gang from Jia Zhangke's childhood, whom he had admired as a role model.

The film had its world premiere at the main competition of the 2018 Cannes Film Festival on 11 May 2018, where it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. It was theatrically released in China on 21 September 2018. Like the rest of Jia's films, it opened to widespread acclaim.