{ "id": "ep7wvcnz16", "slug": "better-days-2019-film", "title": "Better Days (少年的你) (2019 film)", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.coming-of-age-films", "label": "Coming-of-age films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.coming-of-age-films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.coming-of-age-films.coming-of-age-films-released-2010-onward", "label": "Coming-of-age films released 2010 onward", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.coming-of-age-films.coming-of-age-films-released-2010-onward" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "China · 2001 to 2020: Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "path": [ { "id": "geo.chn", "label": "China", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001", "label": "China · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Better Days (少年的你) is a 2019 Mandarin youth crime drama by Derek Tsang, adapted from Jiuyue Xi's novel, starring Zhou Dongyu and Jackson Yee; released 25 October 2019 after censorship delays, it took 1.558 billion yuan in China, eight Hong Kong Film Awards, and a 93rd Academy Awards Best International Feature nomination.", "snippet": "Better Days (少年的你) is a 2019 Mandarin youth crime drama by Derek Tsang, adapted from Jiuyue Xi's novel, starring Zhou Dongyu and Jackson Yee; released 25 October 2019 after censorship delays, it took 1.558 billion yuan in China, eight Hong Kong Film Awards, and a 93rd Academy Awards Best International Feature nomination.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.coming-of-age-films.coming-of-age-films-released-2010-onward", "markdown": "# Better Days (少年的你) (2019 film)\n\n**Better Days** (少年的你) is a 2019 Chinese-language youth crime drama directed by the Hong Kong-born director Derek Tsang (曾國祥), starring [Zhou Dongyu](https://www.edgepedia.org/zhou-dongyu) (周冬雨) as the bullied high school student Chen Nian and [Jackson Yee](https://www.edgepedia.org/jackson-yee) (易烊千璽) as the street hustler Xiao Bei, and adapted from Jiuyue Xi's online novel *Young and Beautiful* (少年的你，如此美丽)[1](https://hknt.hkiff.org.hk/movie/better-days). Produced by Jojo Yuet-chun Hui, the film follows two teenagers from opposite ends of Chinese society who protect each other through school bullying, the pressures of the gaokao college entrance examination, and a murder case in which both become suspects[1](https://hknt.hkiff.org.hk/movie/better-days) • [2](https://www.wellgousa.com/films/better-days). It earned eight Hong Kong Film Awards and was nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards[3](https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp/cms/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Coming-of-Age_E-Booklet_final-final-0814_r.pdf).\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Director / producer | Derek Kwok-cheung Tsang; produced by Jojo Yuet-chun Hui (許月珍), the team behind *Soul Mate* (2016)[1](https://hknt.hkiff.org.hk/movie/better-days) |\n| Source | Jiuyue Xi's online serial novel *Young and Beautiful* (少年的你，如此美丽), first serialized on Jinjiang Literature City[4](https://www.ncac.gov.cn/xxfb/yjdt/201911/t20191104_49678.html) |\n| Format | 135 minutes, color, Putonghua (Mandarin) dialogue, DCP[3](https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp/cms/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Coming-of-Age_E-Booklet_final-final-0814_r.pdf) |\n| Mainland release and box office | 25 October 2019; 5亿元 in the first three days; cumulative 1.558 billion yuan, 9th on the 2019 China box-office chart[5](https://www.hengdian.com/zh-cn/news/media-1016) |\n| Censorship hurdles | Withdrawn from the 69th Berlinale in February 2019; domestic release canceled on 24 June 2019, three days before its planned 27 June opening[6](https://www.zaobao.com.sg/news/entertainment/story20190626-967401) |\n| Top awards | 8 wins from 12 nominations at the 39th Hong Kong Film Awards (2020), including Best Film and Best Director[5](https://www.hengdian.com/zh-cn/news/media-1016) |\n| Oscar nomination | Best International Feature Film, 93rd Academy Awards (2021); first Academy Award nomination for a film by a Hong Kong-born director[1](https://hknt.hkiff.org.hk/movie/better-days) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nThe film is set in the weeks before the gaokao, the two-day national college entrance exam that determines where, and whether, nearly ten million Chinese students study, and the fates of their families[2](https://www.wellgousa.com/films/better-days). After witnessing a classmate's suicide, the straight-A student Chen Nian covers the girl's body with her jacket and becomes the next target of the class bully Wei Lai and her friends[7](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7r8R5MjJQDw). Isolated at school and largely on her own at home, she takes refuge with Xiao Bei, a small-time hoodlum abandoned by his family, who agrees to walk behind and protect her[1](https://hknt.hkiff.org.hk/movie/better-days).\n\nA murder case then entangles both teenagers, who become the prime suspects in the death of a teenage girl[2](https://www.wellgousa.com/films/better-days). According to the film's registration synopsis filed with the authorities, Chen Nian, unable to endure one final bullying attack, accidentally kills Wei Lai; Xiao Bei decides to confess in her place so she can take the gaokao and go to university, but Chen Nian chooses to surrender herself. In the closing scenes, four years later, a paroled Chen Nian has become an English teacher and resumes her life alongside Xiao Bei[8](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2245990/info/). Detective [Zheng Yi](https://www.edgepedia.org/zheng-yi), played by Yin Fang, acts as the film's mediating adult, pushing Chen Nian toward confession rather than letting Xiao Bei take her punishment[9](https://www.cfa.org.cn/cfa/yj/lwby72/2023101909424652794/index.html).\n\n## Production and adaptation\n\nThe project reached Tsang through his producer Jojo Yuet-chun Hui, who had also shepherded his first solo feature *[Soul Mate](https://www.edgepedia.org/soul-mate-2016-film)* (2016), a film whose two co-leads shared the Golden Horse Award for Best Actress[10](https://ient.ifeng.com/c/8wcw96INAcb). Tsang said he read the source novel only once and then set it aside; like *Soul Mate*, the adaptation changed character relationships and plot substantially from the novel[10](https://ient.ifeng.com/c/8wcw96INAcb). Screenplay credit went to Lam Wing-sum, Li Yuan, and Xu Yimeng[3](https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp/cms/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Coming-of-Age_E-Booklet_final-final-0814_r.pdf).\n\nCasting placed a trained film actress opposite a first-time film lead. Jackson Yee, then a member of the boy band TFBOYS, was 17 during filming and had no formal acting training; Tsang initially thought he was unsuitable for the role of Xiao Bei and later praised his day-by-day improvement on set[5](https://www.hengdian.com/zh-cn/news/media-1016) • [11](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1QwTXtQolA). Critics singled out the physical, close-up-led performances of both leads; the film's cinematography is credited to [Yu Jing](https://www.edgepedia.org/yu-jing)-pin[12](https://www.cfa.org.cn/cfa/yj/lwby72/2023101909460977303/index.html) • [3](https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp/cms/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Coming-of-Age_E-Booklet_final-final-0814_r.pdf). Tsang shot documentary-style detail around the gaokao, drawing on footage from the June 2018 gaokao in [Chongqing](https://www.edgepedia.org/chongqing) to build the film's depiction of uniformed students, stacked textbooks, and surveillance[13](https://www.cfa.org.cn/cfa/yj/lwby72/2023101909480142212/index.html).\n\n## Censorship and release\n\nThe film's route to theaters was unusually interrupted. It was selected for the [Generation](https://www.edgepedia.org/generation) 14Plus section of the 69th [Berlin International Film Festival](https://www.edgepedia.org/berlin-international-film-festival) but withdrew shortly before screening in February 2019, officially citing post-production reasons[14](https://www.jiemian.com/article/3248314.html). Its planned Chinese release on 27 June 2019 was canceled on 24 June, with the producers citing \"production completeness and market judgment\"; Singapore's release was also indefinitely postponed[6](https://www.zaobao.com.sg/news/entertainment/story20190626-967401). Trade press attributed the hurdles to the film's brutal depiction of school bullying and its emphasis on gaokao pressure, which coincided with the planned release date[15](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/better-days-review/5144193.article). One industry source reported the film had never received its public screening permit during this period[14](https://www.jiemian.com/article/3248314.html).\n\nOn 22 October 2019 the film was suddenly scheduled for release three days later[6](https://www.zaobao.com.sg/news/entertainment/story20190626-967401). It opened in mainland China on 25 October, broke 5亿元 in three days, and topped the weekly box office for three consecutive weeks, reaching a cumulative 1.558 billion yuan, 9th among 2019 Chinese films[5](https://www.hengdian.com/zh-cn/news/media-1016). Overseas dates followed the same season: a limited United States release on 8 November 2019 through Well Go USA, which grossed $1.9 million, and a Hong Kong release on 5 December 2019[16](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/better_days_2019) • [17](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtjEqBwNPt0).\n\n## Awards\n\n**Hong Kong Film Awards.** At the 39th Hong Kong Film Awards, announced online on 6 May 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the film won 8 of its 12 nominations: Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actress for Zhou Dongyu, Best New Performer for Jackson Yee, Best Cinematography, Best Costume and Makeup Design, and Best Original Film Song[5](https://www.hengdian.com/zh-cn/news/media-1016) • [3](https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp/cms/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Coming-of-Age_E-Booklet_final-final-0814_r.pdf). It was the first year in the awards' 39-year history without a live ceremony[5](https://www.hengdian.com/zh-cn/news/media-1016). Zhou Dongyu became the first actress born in the 1990s to hold both the Golden Horse and Hong Kong Film Award Best Actress titles[5](https://www.hengdian.com/zh-cn/news/media-1016).\n\n**Academy Awards.** The film was nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards as Hong Kong's entry, the first nomination for a film directed by a Hong Kong-born director[1](https://hknt.hkiff.org.hk/movie/better-days).\n\n**Other honors.** Zhou Dongyu won Best Actress at the Golden Rooster Awards and the Asian Film Awards, where Jackson Yee won Best Newcomer; the film also took Best Asian Film at the 2020 [AACTA Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/aacta-awards), audience awards at the Udine Far East Film Festival and Osaka Asian Film Festival, and three prizes from the 2019 Hong Kong Film Directors' Guild Awards[18](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9586294/awards/) • [19](https://www.made-in-chinafestival.com/better-days).\n\n## Reception\n\nAudience and critical scores in China were high but not uniform. Douban settled at 8.4 after opening-day figures of 8.7, while Maoyan and Taopiaopiao users scored it 9.7 and 9.6[20](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2245990/review/). In a Phoenix-net survey, 95.4 percent of respondents said the film accurately presented the problem of school bullying, though professional critics ranged from 9 to 4; some praised its layered portrayal of victims, perpetrators, bystanders, and institutions, while others called it a commercial youth film wearing a social issue as a disguise[7](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7r8R5MjJQDw).\n\nInternational reception was strongly positive. Rotten Tomatoes recorded 97 percent from 30 reviews; Metacritic scored it 83 from 5 critics, its range calling it \"universal acclaim\"[16](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/better_days_2019) • [21](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/better-days/). Critics noted Tsang's refusal to soften the bullying scenes and his balance of melodrama with social realism[16](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/better_days_2019). Chinese film scholars credited the film with reopening a youth-genre space for direct treatment of bullying after years of stylized campus romances, and with drawing broad public attention to the issue[22](https://ir.nwnu.edu.cn/bitstream/39RV6HYL/2208/3/%E7%94%B5%E5%BD%B1%E3%80%8A%E5%B0%91%E5%B9%B4%E7%9A%84%E4%BD%A0%E3%80%8B%E7%9A%84%E4%BA%BA%E6%96%87%E6%83%85%E6%80%80%E4%B8%8E%E7%8E%B0%E5%AE%9E%E5%85%B3%E7%85%A7%E8%A7%A3%E8%AF%BB.pdf).\n\n## Adaptation controversy\n\nSoon after release, the source novel was accused of \"ronggeng\" (融梗, fusing plot elements), an informal term for blending story devices from multiple works, specifically [Keigo Higashino](https://www.edgepedia.org/keigo-higashino)'s novels *Journey Under the Midnight Sun* (白夜行) and *[The Devotion of Suspect X](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-devotion-of-suspect-x)* (嫌疑犯X的献身)[4](https://www.ncac.gov.cn/xxfb/yjdt/201911/t20191104_49678.html). The National Copyright Administration's industry commentary observed that some plot elements and character setups resembled Higashino's works, but that whether such similarity constitutes copyright infringement requires case-by-case legal analysis, and that no infringement litigation against the author had followed years of dispute[4](https://www.ncac.gov.cn/xxfb/yjdt/201911/t20191104_49678.html). The commentary also noted that the film had made substantial changes to the novel, further weakening similarities with Higashino's fiction; Tsang said he had never read *Journey Under the Midnight Sun*[4](https://www.ncac.gov.cn/xxfb/yjdt/201911/t20191104_49678.html) • [10](https://ient.ifeng.com/c/8wcw96INAcb).\n\n## References\n\n1. [Better Days, Hong Kong New Talents (HKIFF)](https://hknt.hkiff.org.hk/movie/better-days)\n2. [Better Days synopsis, Well Go USA Entertainment](https://www.wellgousa.com/films/better-days)\n3. [Coming of Age e-booklet, Better Days, Leisure and Cultural Services Department, Hong Kong](https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp/cms/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Coming-of-Age_E-Booklet_final-final-0814_r.pdf)\n4. [《少年的你》火了质疑原著抄袭之声来了, National Copyright Administration of China (2019-11-04)](https://www.ncac.gov.cn/xxfb/yjdt/201911/t20191104_49678.html)\n5. [独揽八奖！横店影业联合出品《少年的你》成金像奖最大赢家, Hengdian Group (2020-05-07)](https://www.hengdian.com/zh-cn/news/media-1016)\n6. [《少年的你》新中突撤档, Lianhe Zaobao (2019-06-26)](https://www.zaobao.com.sg/news/entertainment/story20190626-967401)\n7. [独家|《少年的你》Ifeng电影榜单, ifeng.com (2019-10-28)](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7r8R5MjJQDw)\n8. [少年的你 详细资料, 1905电影网](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2245990/info/)\n9. [《少年的你》：在残酷青春中成长, China Film Archive (2019-10-30)](https://www.cfa.org.cn/cfa/yj/lwby72/2023101909424652794/index.html)\n10. [独家|《少年的你》导演曾国祥回应剧本争议, ifeng.com (2019-10-27)](https://ient.ifeng.com/c/8wcw96INAcb)\n11. [《少年的你》導演曾國祥透露選角過程, Now爆谷台 (2020-03-27)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1QwTXtQolA)\n12. [《少年的你》：青春期的\"刺客列传\", China Film Archive (2019)](https://www.cfa.org.cn/cfa/yj/lwby72/2023101909460977303/index.html)\n13. [《少年的你》：时代、加速度与空间叙事, China Film Archive (2019)](https://www.cfa.org.cn/cfa/yj/lwby72/2023101909480142212/index.html)\n14. [《少年的你》官宣\"撤档\"，实际一直没有拿到龙标？, Jiemian News (2019-06)](https://www.jiemian.com/article/3248314.html)\n15. ['Better Days': Review, Screen Daily (2019-10-29)](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/better-days-review/5144193.article)\n16. [Better Days (2019), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/better_days_2019)\n17. [《少年的你》正式預告, Edko Films (2019-11-20)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtjEqBwNPt0)\n18. [Better Days (2019) Awards, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9586294/awards/)\n19. [Better Days, Made in China Festival](https://www.made-in-chinafestival.com/better-days)\n20. [少年的你 影评, 1905电影网](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2245990/review/)\n21. [Better Days Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/better-days/)\n22. [电影《少年的你》的人文情怀与现实关照解读, 新闻研究导刊 (2019)](https://ir.nwnu.edu.cn/bitstream/39RV6HYL/2208/3/%E7%94%B5%E5%BD%B1%E3%80%8A%E5%B0%91%E5%B9%B4%E7%9A%84%E4%BD%A0%E3%80%8B%E7%9A%84%E4%BA%BA%E6%96%87%E6%83%85%E6%80%80%E4%B8%8E%E7%8E%B0%E5%AE%9E%E5%85%B3%E7%85%A7%E8%A7%A3%E8%AF%BB.pdf)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Coming-of-age films › Coming-of-age films released 2010 onward*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/better-days-2019-film", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/better-days-2019-film.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Better Days (少年的你) (2019 film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/better-days-2019-film. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Better Days (少年的你) (2019 film)](https://www.edgepedia.org/better-days-2019-film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/better-days-2019-film](https://www.edgepedia.org/better-days-2019-film). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Better Days (少年的你) (2019 film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/better-days-2019-film. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Better Days is a 2019 Mandarin youth crime drama by Derek Tsang, adapted from Jiuyue Xi's novel, starring Zhou Dongyu and Jackson Yee; released 25 October 2019 after censorship delays, it took 1.558 billion yuan in China, eight Hong Kong Film Awards, and a 93rd Academy Awards Best International Feature nomination." }