Getting Home is a film you'll be glad you watched - a surprisingly touching story about friendship and keeping a promise; a fascinating travelogue introducing us to the people and geography of rural China; an observation of how old values and customs have not completely survived in the modern age; and, it is a really funny movie - in a quieter, more subtle way than you would get from an American take on the same concept.
In this soulful comedy, Zhao, a middle-aged construction worker, strives to fulfill a departed co-worker's wish to be buried in China's Three Gorges region. From this premise, accomplished director Zhang Yang gives us several personal stories about everyday people, all connected to the central character, Zhao, who epitomizes the qualities of friendship, loyalty and honor.
Setting out with his friend's body in tow, Zhao travels hundreds of miles across beautiful Southwest China, encountering a number of colorful adventures and characters. With a storyline about lugging a dead body through rural China, you may expect a light comedy, but director Zhang gives us a gently philosophical film that is life-affirming, imaginative and endearing. Moreover, this humorous tale of friendship offers a powerful commentary on the value of community in modern China.
As critic James Mudge writes, "Ultimately, as with Zhang's previous works, it is this emotional core which drives the film and which really pulls the viewer into the story. Funny and poignant in equal measures, it makes for great entertainment and again goes to show that the best films from China in recent times have been the small, personal ones rather than the big budget blockbusters."
GETTING HOME(Luo Ye Gui Gen) Comedy
Director Zhang Yang, 2007, China, 101 min, in Mandarin; English subtitles. [NR]
SUNDAY OCT 18, 4:00 social hour at 3:00
WEDNESDAY OCT 21, 7:30 social hour at 6:30
NOTE: This is a 3rd generation YouTube trailer. The theatrical release has much better subtitles with superior image and audio reproduction.
INTERESTING FACTS:
Chinese director Yang Zhang and screenwriter Yao Wang built the film script around a real incident in 2006 when a Chinese peasant carried a dead buddy to his village, oblivious of all Chinese laws that prohibit such an action, to ensure that the dead man did not transform into a "hungry ghost."
The original title "Luo ye gui gen" is a Chinese proverb meaning "Falling leaves return to their roots".
Festivals & Notable Screenings
Winner Ecumenical Jury Prize
Winner Best Film
Winner Best Film
Winner Audience Award
Winner Audience Award
Winner Audience Award
Winner Audience Award
Winner Audience Award
Winner Audience Award
Winner Gran Prix
Winner Audience Award
Winner Audience Award
Winner Audience Award
Nom Best Asian Film
Nom Best Film
Nom Best Film
Cast
Benshan Zhao ... Old Zhao
Qiwen Hong ... Liu Quanyou
Dandan Song ... The Woman
Degang Guo ... The Hijacker
Jun Hu ... Lorry Driver
Haiying Sun ... Old Policeman
Fan Liao ... Young Policeman
Yu Xia ... The Cyclist
Ma Wu ... Old Man at the Funeral
Jinshan Liu ... Crooked Restaurant Boss
Qi Zhang ... Hair Salon Girl
Tao Guo ... The Beekeeper
Ying Chen ... The Beekeeper's Wife
Liu Yuanyuan ... The Lady
Yi Sha Na ... The Nurse
Bo Liu ... Tractor Driver
Lin Xiong Zhang ... Blood Donation 'Point Man'
Dong Ming Wu ... Shelter Officer
Chang Guo Li ... Truck Driver #1
Chao Yang ... Truck Driver #2
Xia Shang ... The Passenger
Credits
Zhang Yang ... director
Zhang Yang, Wang Yao ... writers
Wouter Barendrecht .... producer
Yong Er ... producer
Peter Loehr ... producer
Yiu-Fai Lai ... cinematography
Nelson Yu Lik-wai ... cinematography
Wang Dan Rong ... sound
Dou Peng ... music
Misti Boland ... production design
Sally Cummings ... art direction
Jiakun Zhang ... unit production manager
Distributed by The Global Film Initiative
Getting Home by James Mudge,* Beyond Hollywood
Simply put, Getting Home is one of the best Chinese films of the year.
The latest effort from Zhang Yang continues his rich vein of form with another honest tale of ordinary people. The film stars Zhao Benshan in the lead role, an actor best known for his work as a stage comedian, who also starred in a number of films including Zhang Yimou's Happy Times. It features cameo appearances by a variety of Chinese stars, including Hu Jun, Xia Yu, Guo Tao, Song Dandan and the immortal Wu Ma.
The plot follows Zhao as a construction worker whose best friend Liu dies, leaving him to fulfill a promise that he will return his body to his distant hometown. Short on money, the determined Zhao decides to carry his friend's corpse on his back, relying on help from the people he meets on his travels.
Getting Home is a road film in the purest sense, progressing in anecdotal fashion through Zhao's encounters with a variety of quirky characters, some of whom help and some of whom hinder him in his journey. The plot revolves around a number of small, personal stories and is frequently unpredictable, as the viewer never knows what lies around the corner, or who he will run into next. Through this, the film works well as a series of clever observations on the lives of everyday people in modern rural China, and is both believable and fascinating. Despite the subject matter, it makes for upbeat and life affirming viewing, helped by the fact that the honest and loyal Zhao makes for a great, sympathetic protagonist who the viewer really comes to care for. His efforts to fulfill his promise are very touching, as are many of the tales of the people he meets, and Zhang shows his usual skill in avoiding cheap sentiment, keeping things heartfelt and unforced throughout.
Although the premise might seem to suggest some kind of bad taste or dark corpse comedy, the film is actually light-hearted with a gentle, grounded sense of humor. Most of the jokes come through the odd behavior of the supporting cast, and the film is both funny and imaginative, featuring some great scenes including a metal detector using robber and an elaborate funeral being held for a man who does not appear to be dead. As well as providing a generous number of laughs, these work well to give the film a lively spring in its step, and paint a playful, colorful picture of the common people, though one which is never less than convincing.
As might be expected the film features some strikingly beautiful scenery, made all the more so thanks to Zhang's naturalistic, discreet approach which showcases the locations without resorting to obvious panoramic shots or detracting from the proceedings' down to earth feel. Similarly, although there are inevitably some images of change and modernization in rural China, such as the flooding of valleys, these sit quite comfortably in the background and are never allowed to get in the way of the genuine, human story at the film's heart.
Ultimately, as with Zhang's previous works, it is this emotional core which drives the film and which really pulls the viewer into the story. Few other directors working in modern Chinese cinema or indeed from anywhere else in the world are his equal in this respect, and Getting Home is another tribute to his great talent as a teller of compassionate tales. Funny and poignant in equal measures, it makes for great entertainment and again goes to show that the best films to come from China in recent times have been the small, personal ones rather than the big budget blockbusters. ::~::
* Used with permission; the above is an abridged version of the original review by Mr. Mudge. Read the complete review and more of his excellent film articles here.
James Mudge is BeyondHollywood.com's longest contributing movie reviewer. Based out of Glasgow, James is the go-to guy for Asian movie reviews old and new. He has a forthcoming book about Asian movies set to be released sometime this century.