The poetic, suspenseful THE EQUATION OF LOVE AND DEATH stars one of China's most intriguing actresses, Zhou Xun (BEIJING BICYCLE; SUZHOU RIVER), as Li Mi, a lovely but lovelorn chain-smoking cab driver in Kunming (capitol of China's Yunnan Province). Obsessed with finding her missing boyfriend, she confronts each passenger with photographs and frustrated pleas. For four years she has been looking for him, counting the days, quoting the enigmatic letters that he sends. When Li Mi picks up two seemingly harmless, friendly customers, she unwittingly sets off a series of dangerous and trying escapades that challenge her to keep her composure while facing off against her dreams and nightmares. Sometimes deception can be charity, a police officer tells Li Mi as she struggles to find the truth (and her boyfriend) amongst a labyrinthine web of lies.

Artful and tense, THE EQUATION OF LOVE AND DEATH showcases Zhou Xun as a woman on the verge of exploding with anxiety, fear and rage. Other highlights include the sensitive performance of Wang Baoqiang as a sweet, bumbling small-time crook, in search of his own lost love and forced to make a choice between success and romance. Director Cao Baoping weaves equations of mistaken identity, lost love and hard knocks throughout this quick-witted dark comedy of lovers, crooks and cops, which earned him the New Directors Award at the 2008 San Sebastian International Film Festival.