Hooligan Sparrow

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Hooligan Sparrow

2016

1h 24m

Documentary

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

97%

Tomatometer

31 Reviews

74%

Popcornmeter

100+ Ratings

Human rights activist Ye Haiyan is chased from town to town by local governments, national secret police, and even her own neighbors after she seeks justice against an elementary school principal who abused six girls.

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Critics Consensus

Nanfu Wang demonstrates the first-hand integrity of a documentarian putting their life on the line to get the truth out in this suspenseful and moving exposé on corruption and injustice.

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Richard Brody

The New Yorker

May 17, 2021

Wang reveals the Chinese government treating public protests against official abuses as graver offenses than the abuses themselves; she documents a regime of violence that suppresses dissent and sustains impunity.

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John Anderson

Wall Street Journal

Oct 14, 2016

Ms. Wang shows an inordinate amount of courage, a kind of guerrilla tenacity, in following Ms. Ye through her protests in Hainan, and her subsequent harassment.

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Moira MacDonald

Seattle Times

Sep 8, 2016

3.5/4

The searing documentary "Hooligan Sparrow" is a portrait of courage.

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Kathy Fennessy

Seattle Film Blog

Nov 30, 2025

3/4

If [Nanfu] Wang never gets to the bottom of the reasons why Sparrow has decided to risk her life for a cause--other than the fact that Chinese women can only benefit from her advocacy--it doesn't weaken her film in any way.

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Harris Dang

The AU Review

Nov 1, 2018

4.5/5

Hooligan Sparrow must been seen by the widest audience possible.

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Andrew Parker

The Gate

Aug 28, 2018

4.4/5

Wang has bravely crafted an indispensible documentation of how the Chinese government uses threats and intimidation to squash dissension...

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Dec 6, 2016

12/6/16 Netflix A Chinese profile in courage. If we think China has made big strides in human rights then they must have really been mired in the mud before. We have our problems but it sure beats living in an oppressive government country. Good for Ms. Wang and Ye for bringing this story to the world.

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Oct 19, 2016

Fascinating Chinese documentary more about filming a documentary than about the real subject.

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Jul 22, 2016

A bold piece of renegade filmmaking

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Nanfu Wang

Director

Jimmy Wang Yu

Actor

Nanfu Wang

Writer

Andy Cohen

Executive Producer

Alison Klayman

Executive Producer

Nanfu Wang

Producer

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Synopsis

Human rights activist Ye Haiyan is chased from town to town by local governments, national secret police, and even her own neighbors after she seeks justice against an elementary school principal who abused six girls.

Director: Nanfu Wang
Producer: Nanfu Wang
Screenwriter: Nanfu Wang
Distributor: The Film Collaborative
Genre: Documentary, Crime, Drama
Original Language: Chinese
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 22, 2016, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 15, 2016
Runtime: 1h 24m

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