To Live Review: The Garden Cinema screens terrific but sorrowful movie by Zhang Yimou.
To Live is not an enjoyable movie. Life is unrelenting in oppressing the protagonist Fugui and his family, to the point you spend the entire time clenched in anticipation of the next setback that will befall them. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, To Live is undeniably a great movie.
Directed by Zhang Yimou, To Live was released in 1994. It is an adaption of the novel of the same name by Yu Hua.
Initially banned from being screened in China, it won major successes overseas. It was screened at the Cannes Film Festival, winning the Grand Prix, Prize of the Ecumenical Jury, and Best Actor Award for Ge You who played lead Fugui.
The Garden Cinema in London screened To Live as part of their Zhang Yimou: a Retrospective season. They are hosting a season of Chinese director Zhang Yimou’s greatest movies from July 19th to September 2nd. It will bring together 11 of his earlier movies, including some never before screened in the UK.
The film tells the story of one family during China’s turmoil-filled 20th century. Starting in the 1940s the movie jumps forward decade by decade showing their lives through civil war, the Great Leap Forward, and the Cultural Revolution. As the decades pass by the movie follows the the family’s ups and (many) downs.
Zhang Yimou sets the tone in To Live very quickly. In the opening moments, our protagonist Fugui gambles away his house, his wife and children leave him because of his addiction, and then his father dies while cursing his name.
This is only the beginning, and To Live does not let up throughout.
The family – wife Jiazhen returns to Fugui after giving birth to their second child – faces ongoing challenges.
There are ups. Comedic shadow puppet performances play a role through much of the movie as Fugui’s source of income while communal scenes show the strength of a community bound together. A touching wedding provides a bittersweet moment as Fugui’s and Jiazhen’s daughter successfully marries. As they arrange their wedding, Jiazhen informs her soon to be son-in-law that their daughter has had “a hard life”.
That seems like an understatement. As positive as some moments are, you know that soon a horrific setback will take away the family’s hard-won happiness.
Compared to his earlier movies like Red Sorghum, his first movie, Zhang Yimou uses less colour. To Live is dulled out with more greys and blues.
It fits the tone of the movie. There are still splashes of red though– on paintings of Chairman Mao, the ubiquitous Little Red Book, and the white bandages stained red after a particularly traumatising hospital scene.
Despite the more reserved palate, his cinematography still shines through. Several shots sear their way into your brain.
The defining thought in the movie is in its title. To Live. Seemingly simple, within the title there is a resolute strength. Despite the countless tragedies that befall him, Fugui continues to express his desire ‘to live’.
His wife sums it up in another way, despite losing her home and money, she simply wishes: “All I ask is a quiet life together.” Sadly, that wish seems out of reach.
Zhang Yimou: A season will be screening from July 19th to September 2nd at The Garden Cinema in London. For more details read our article on how it came about: The Garden Cinema brings Chinese great Zhang Yimou to the UK
If you liked this article why not read: Zhang Yimou’s Red Sorghum at The Garden Cinema
