Summer 2008. China is looking forward to a solar eclipse and Beijing is preparing for the Olympic Games. After serving a ten-year prison sentence, Lang returns to Chixia, a small town on the edge of the Gobi Desert. His birthplace is almost unrecognisable: the inhabitants have been driven from their homes and stray dogs are infesting the area. However, those who remain have not forgotten Lang. Sometimes he is welcomed as a hero, but others, such as the local butcher/crime boss, harbor a grudge. Against his will, Lang is enlisted as a dog catcher to track down a slim, black and potentially dangerous dog. But when he meets the beast, the two find an unexpected ally in each other. Chinese director Guan Hu tells the story of ex-convict Lang with great heart and humour, and was awarded the Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes for it. Fans of Chinese cinema can also spot a cameo by director Jia Zhangke (‘Ash is Purest White’).