Inspired by actual events, director Chen Shi-Zheng's socially conscious psychological drama entitled,Dark Matter follows the journey of an ambitious Chinese scientist working towards his doctorate degree in the United States, only to be marginalized to the extent that he ultimately loses his way.It stars Liu Ye,Aidan Quinn and Meryl Streep.The screenplay was written by Billy Shebar.All Liu Xing ever wanted was to study the origins of the universe at a Western university. Upon arriving at the school, Liu immediately rents a modest apartment with a few other Chinese students and begins flirting with the pretty American who works at the local coffee shop. Personally welcomed into Department Head Jacob Reiser's select cosmology group, Liu remains dedicated to his studies and optimistic about the future. Things continue to look up as Liu becomes close with wealthy university patron Johanna Silver after the two become acquainted at an orientation for foreigners sponsored by a local church. Eventually, Liu becomes Reiser's protégé, and makes a sizable impression at a prestigious conference attended by the pair. But attitudes start to shift when Liu's studies in dark matter come into direct conflict with his mentor's prominent theories and well-established studies. His excitement about a potential breakthrough causes him to ignore repeated warnings that he must pay his dues, and Liu's findings are eventually eclipsed by that of more studious fellow student Laurence. Determined to have his studies published, Liu goes behind Reiser's back, but he ultimately becomes the target of ire rather than accolades, with Johanna's naïve encouragement prompting him along a dangerous collision course. While Liu remains enamored with the concept of the American dream and optimistic about American science being a free market of ideas, he begins to grow dejected after his dissertation is rejected, the girl at the coffee shop blows him off, and his roommates all find lucrative jobs. Essentially left behind at the university, Liu rejects Johanna's offer for help and vows not to return home to disappointed parents. Now, as he coasts on the fumes of his unrealized dreams, the dishonored student prepares to lash out with one final act of devastating annihilation. The movie is a thrilling examination of the origins of the universe, the dark side of cutthroat academics, and the pursuit of the American dream.Director Chen Shi-Zheng's film has a graceful energy, and three strong performances help make this serene drama and its shocking conclusion a quietly moving film.What makes it not great is the fact that the creaky plotting, inscrutable characters, and unconvincing ending make it difficult for audiences to connect with it.But despite of being imperfect, the high caliber of acting as well as these lucid moments in the earlier part of the film are strong and memorable highlights with which to leave the theater.

This is a confusing muddled drama of the sad plight of a brilliant Chinese student at an American university.This is the first effort of both the director; Shi=Zheng Che & writer Billy Shebar.If more experienced hands did this movie it very likely would have been handled better.The student(going for his PHD) is played by LUI YE-- from mainland China, His performance is first rate,He is a major actor in China & its easy to see why.Aiden Quinn is his mentor & professor & does his usual fine performance. Meryl Streep as a small ,but pivotal role and to me she seems not up to her usual par.The movie was filmed in Utah, & played in some festivals in 2007, released to very few theatres in 2008 & the box-office was pitiful.This is one of those films where they expect the audience to know what the story is supposed to be about. I was confused & think all will be as well...Ratings **1/2 (out of 4) 70 points (out of 100) IMDb 6 (out of 10)

Dark Matter (2006)Dark Matter Doesn'tIt's great to see a movie the focuses on Chinese students in an American college setting, with the pressures and cross-cultural humor. At the college I teach at, there is a huge population of Asian students (many or most are Chinese) and they are a great presence on and off campus. Much of the dialog in Dark Matter is in Mandarin (I think) with subtitles. And so there is real interest for that. But this international slant is not enough to make the movie a good movie. What happened to plot, continuity, vision, editing, and oh, don't forget, acting? Even Meryl Streep is just a small time ham in this setting, at ease more with herself than her role. This is great drive-in fare, for the second show. If you have a science or astrophysics/cosmology background, you'll find it especially vexing, I think. I did.The plot is a drawn out version of a somewhat familiar story: the brilliant kid (played by a very sweet Ye Lui) at college facing obstacles to his/her greatness (as a science wiz). As in Good Will Hunting. In this case, Streep is an American who likes Chinese culture, so she is a likable ambassador to show our main character around. And to do Tai-Chi now and then. And there is the issue of the students, mainly the rivalry between them to win over the professor and get to speak at a conference.In a way, none of this serious stuff matters. It's really a romantic comedy, alternating between saccharine touchy-feely land and goofy silliness, all of which we've seen before, and some of which is genuinely funny if you relax about the whole thing.. Director Shi- Zheng Chen's first film might not be his last, so cross your fingers that he keeps the good stuff and develops his art, and gets good scriptwriters.The only thing I can think of that motivated this movie is that it was aimed at a cross- over between Chinese and Chinese-American audiences. Who knows, with the rising tides in China's science community, it's growing love of movies, and it's continuing competition with the United States in all things, this kind of easy-to-digest tale might just be a hit there.And the ending? Meant to be high drama, it's a total cheap sensationalist cop out, and downright ugly all around. I found it almost shameful it was so forced and violent. Unless you are really interested in some of the underlying themes, skip this one.

At least I rented this movie through Redbox, which means I only lost a dollar on the rental. If anything, this movie made me realize what a vast cultural divide there is between Americans and people who come to our country. Liu Ye's entire focus was on coming up with such a phenomenal concept that he would win the Nobel Prize and give his parents great honor. He has no real perception of what a dissertation is supposed to be. He lives and thinks in clichés and is clueless about what is really important. The previews that I had seen of this movie were much better than the actual film. I am shocked that Meryl Streep and Aidan Quinn were part of this production.