In China, a new industry has emerged devoted to helping couples stay married in the face of infidelity. Wang Zhenxi is part of this growing profession, a “mistress dispeller”, who is hired to maintain the bonds of marriage —and break up affairs— by any means necessary. Offering strikingly intimate access to private dramas usually hidden behind closed doors, “Mistress Dispeller” follows a real, unfolding case of infidelity as Teacher Wang attempts to bring a couple back from the edge of crisis. Their story shifts our perception about how explore the ways of emotion, pragmatism and cultural norms collide to shape romantic relationships in contemporary China.

Presented at the Venice International Film Festival.