This quiet, intense Israeli film unfolds like a psychological thriller. A poetry-loving teacher discovers that one of her young pupils is a literary prodigy, and takes increasingly extreme measures to protect his gift from an indifferent world. As the story unfolds, it becomes clear that Mr. Lapid is engaged in a stealthy, ferocious critique of a society that has sacrificed its spiritual values and its cultural inheritance on the altar of power and materialism.
The online novel Once Upon A Time by Tang Qi was published in 2009. This year saw a series of adaptations of the novel, including a TV series, a film, a drama and a computer game.
Bernard Baumohl, chief global economist of the Economic Outlook Group, said he is even more optimistic. "The next two years could be the best two we have seen in at least a decade," he said. "There is clearly a lot of evidence the economy is gaining a lot of momentum."