The film maker was able to gain access to many areas in China because they did not seem to have an overtly political point. We get to see lots of glimpses of Chinese life that would otherwise be heavily curated, either by pro-Chinese or anti-Chinese peopganda. Instead the film maker was able to seem completely neutral in only offering what basically amounts to stock footage of various jobs in China. It almost feels like an episode of "How It's Made".
However, as intriguing as it is from the start, it gets boring extremely quickly. The film maker decided not to add any sort of narration, and that was a huge mistake. What you end up with is a disjointed collage of scenes with a, "Interpret your own meaning," conclusion. While I'm sure many people see tons of implied points and messages conveyed with this imagery, I don't find the uncertainty of it compelling at all and I found myself literally struggling to complete the film.
I gave it a three because I enjoy stock footage, and I appreciate a new approach. However, after a while I wad very unmoved by what is essentially just watching people at work. There are the obvious implicit commentaries on social inequalities, but they're not any different than the same inequalities we could observe in any other capitalist society. Meanwhile, without narration, so much of the unique aspects of their culture is left vague an undefined. For example, they will use the term 'boss' over and over again in the film, without the viewer able to differentiate between the term being used to describe the amount of social influence a particular person may have--akin to the West's "influencers"--or if they are talking about a literal boss, i.e. Someone's employer. Without a narrator there to give the viewer this sort of context, most scenes more incoherent than simply abstract.
It's an interesting concept but it really falls short in delivery. Perhaps if it had been 60 minutes instead of 90, but after a while the film maker's desire to leave the point unstated simply makes the film feel pointless.
However, as intriguing as it is from the start, it gets boring extremely quickly. The film maker decided not to add any sort of narration, and that was a huge mistake. What you end up with is a disjointed collage of scenes with a, "Interpret your own meaning," conclusion. While I'm sure many people see tons of implied points and messages conveyed with this imagery, I don't find the uncertainty of it compelling at all and I found myself literally struggling to complete the film.
I gave it a three because I enjoy stock footage, and I appreciate a new approach. However, after a while I wad very unmoved by what is essentially just watching people at work. There are the obvious implicit commentaries on social inequalities, but they're not any different than the same inequalities we could observe in any other capitalist society. Meanwhile, without narration, so much of the unique aspects of their culture is left vague an undefined. For example, they will use the term 'boss' over and over again in the film, without the viewer able to differentiate between the term being used to describe the amount of social influence a particular person may have--akin to the West's "influencers"--or if they are talking about a literal boss, i.e. Someone's employer. Without a narrator there to give the viewer this sort of context, most scenes more incoherent than simply abstract.
It's an interesting concept but it really falls short in delivery. Perhaps if it had been 60 minutes instead of 90, but after a while the film maker's desire to leave the point unstated simply makes the film feel pointless.