MOVIES - Aug. 14, 1989

The China Film Assn. did not name a best picture this year, according to the China’s official Xinhua News Agency, which has quoted film experts as saying “a lack of outstanding films” made awarding the Golden Rooster impossible. This was the first time since the award was established in 1981 that no film was named best picture. Awarding of the Golden Rooster has created controversy in recent years as China’s film industry becomes increasingly bold and creative, but since the military crushed the student-led pro-democracy movement in June, the government has cracked down on dissent and criticized some reforms as having gone too far.