Part of Jia Zhang-ke’s Rapidly Changing Landscapes (Dir. #3)

In "Still Life," nurse Shen Hong (Jia regular Zhao Tao) and coal miner Han Sanming (as himself) leave the Shanxi province to search for their significant others in the decaying Three Gorges dam town of Fengjie. For Sanming it's his ex-wife, who he hasn't seen in sixteen years, and for Hong it's her husband, who left her two years prior. Both are on a type of quest: one pursues the past while the other desires to move on into the future. Sanming longs for his daughter (Jia's camera indulges in the rare moment when he's given a glimpse of her in photographs), and intends to mend the relationship with his ex-wife. Hong, in contrast, has fallen in love with someone else in her husband's absence and wants only a divorce. Both travel through the strange and unfamiliar landscape of Fengjie, an environment in a constant state of decomposition, condemned by the rising tides of the Yangtze River. Fengjie's demise is so imminent that demolition crews brand homes and other buildings with the Chinese character for "demolish," often without notifying the residents.

Jia likens the terrain to an alien landscape, incorporating science fiction elements to make his point: the flash of a UFO in the sky connects the narrative threads of Hong and Sanming; a group of men in otherworldly HAZMAT suits survey and sanitize a demolished area; and an odd shaped building abruptly takes off like a spaceship into the clear night air. These absurdist touches act in much the same way the cell phone text messaging and animated sequences aided Jia's last film, "The World"-- or, arguably, constrained it. Like that film, "Still Life" feels (ironically) alien to Jia's first three features ("Xiao Wu," "Unknown Pleasures" and "Platform"). Jia's early work, often referred to as his 'Hometown Trilogy,' presented a stark, unaffected and intimate portrait of youths disconnected from the environment around them. In contrast, both "The World" and "Still Life" feel decidedly more self-important, with broader ideals ("The World" is set in a vast theme park containing downsized versions of recognizable landmarks), thus seeming more globally conscious than concerned specifically with Chinese culture.

In another sense, Jia is growing up, and as his characters age (like his favorite actor, Zhao Tao), so do his concepts expand in scope and breadth. His films are evolving, becoming more grandiose and ambitious. "24 City," Jia's latest documentary, which is to be released stateside later this year (I caught it in Toronto last fall), finds the filmmaker in a similar state of profundity, and in awe at the sight of buildings being torn down en mass. It depicts the city of Chengdu and its people in a state of transition: Factory 420, a state-owned establishment, is being demolished to make way for the apartment complex of the film's title. Interviewing the residents of 420, Jia finds a people expressing mixed feelings about the transition, and never presents his own views or opinions. That film was told from the POV of those entrenched while "Still Life" is the story of two outsiders. Although set in different locations, both films find the director earnestly fascinated by changing/eroding landscapes, and the blurring of the line between documentary and narrative fiction. It's true that "Still Life" is a narrative film, but should it be classified as such when its setting (buildings crumble in both the background and foreground throughout) is not one of artifice, but the result of real occurrences? How about the fact that "24 City" not only interviews real residents of 420, but actors playing a part? Jia clearly finds it unnecessary to distinguish between the two realms of cinema. For him, to do so would be as futile as attempting to think up a story more fantastical and bizarre than that which is already taking place around him.

Last Word

Another meaningful and gorgeous work of cinematic, sociopolitical commentary from one of the medium's modern masters.

And check out...

• Old Hat Film: Xiao Wu (1997) Directed by Jia Zhang-ke

• Old Hat Film: Platform (2002) Directed by Jia Zhang-ke

• Old Hat Film: Unknown Pleasures (2002) Directed by Jia Zhang-ke

• Old Hat Film: The World (2005) Directed by Jia Zhang-ke

Review By:
Sam C. Mac, Editor-In-Chief

IN REVIEW ONLINE