Film Review: To Live - 30th Anniversary

 "To  Live"

**** (out of ****)

The last line in "To Live" (1994) is life will get better and better. The man making the statement has seemed to have lost all that was important in his life. The line isn't meant as sarcasm but to imply humans require hope. Without hope what is the point of going on?

The film was directed by Zhang Yimou, perhaps the most prominent of China's Fifth Generation filmmakers and a wonderful showcase of the kind of humanist films Yimou was making before shifting gears and finding commercial success as a martial arts filmmaker, behind such titles as "Hero" (2004) and "House of Flying Daggers" (2004).

As the film celebrates the 30th anniversary of its U.S. release, I also wanted to include it as part of my Was I Right?  series - a year long theme involving me looking back at films I have placed on various year-end top ten lists to determine if I was right to choose them. "To Live" was my choice for the best film of 1994.

"To Live", which was based on a novel Lifetimes by Hua Yu, is an epic telling of a country's history spanning nearing three decades, taking place from the 1940s to the 1970s. We focus on one particular family, experiencing the course of history through their eyes and witness the effects it has on their family. The plot device isn't new but in the talented hands on Zhang Yimou the story feels fresh and captivating. We care about this family and believe we have been given a complete view of their lives. So that by the time we hear the man say that last line it has a poignancy to it and we fear is a line that will be repeated as part of the continuous vicious cycle we call life. 

At the beginning of the film we follow Fugui (You Ge), a man described by his own father as a degenerate gambler. It is not an entirely incorrect assessment of Fugui as he has amassed such a significant debt playing dice that he has lost the family home, leaving himself, his parents, and wife and child homeless. The embarrassment of the situation combined with the sheer hatred the father feels towards his son, causes him to instantly have a heart attack. His wife, Jiazhen (Gong Li) who is also expecting their second child, sees no future with him if he doesn't stop gambling and leaves him with their daughter that same night. It is such an extreme series of circumstances that in the wrong hands the material could get unintended laughs. Yimou however is able to find the right tone and create a delicate balance telling a story where joy and sadness walk hand in hand.

Before you let your imagination get the best of you, Yimou's story isn't one of triumphant redemption concerning a man's struggle to win back his house and family. Although the couple is reunited after it becomes known Fungui has stopped gambling and drinking, the film has a more jaded and cynical worldview suggesting the only way to survive in this world is to go along to get along. 

That message caused quite a bit of controversy for Yimou in his homeland, where the government banned him and Gong Li - his than lover - from making films for two years. As the film was interpreted as being too critical of the Communist party and its policies.

At issue is the fact that Fugui is not shown to be a dedicated party man as he goes through such moments in history as the Chinese Civil War, the Great Leap Forward, and finally the Cultural Revolution. During the Civil War Fugui, at the drop of a hat, simply switches sides from the Nationalist to the Liberation Army when captured. He has no strong political belief. He simply wants to go along to get along.

Fugui was able to endure the war by performing plays with shadow puppets - which he was given by the same man responsible for taking his home, as a means to pick himself up - for the soldiers. It is a definite commentary on the role of art during oppressive political regimes. In one scene the cagey Fungui tells a party official he has been thinking about some propaganda plays he might be able to perform with the puppets. But in the end he must eventually destroy the puppets as they are a symbol of different political times.

Jiazhen is not shown to be a believer in the cause either nor are their children. Jiazhen has only ever had one request of life, to be able to live a quiet life together with her husband. That is ultimately the request we all have of life and it is the most difficult to achieve. In "To Live" Yimou argues politics is the biggest obstacle to attain such bliss.

And a fearful devotion to the party causes many set backs for the family, even causing death. The incidents could have been avoided if people were allowed to live their lives in peaceful quiet together. But when living under the Communist party one must always save face and not risk losing their good social standing in front of others. Going along to get along.

One major concern for Fungui and Jiazhen is their daughter, Fengxia (Tianchi Liu). A high fever as a child has caused the girl to grow up mute. Who will take care of her when mother and father are gone? What man will want to marry a mute girl? However it becomes a perfect symbol of obedience both to the party and a husband. She can never voice disapproval. Fortune seems to shine on the daughter when a party member friend tries to play matchmaker, believing he has found a suitable man, a high ranking member of the Red Army (Lian-Yi Li). He won't be too picky about finding a wife since he has a lame leg. Why these two things - muteness and a limp - are equated in the film is beyond me. Never-the-less the two hit it off with the parent's approval. Perhaps with such a high ranking official in the family it will provide some protection.

One of the most blistering attacks on the Communist party happens when the family visits a hospital. All of the older established doctors have been declared counter-revolutionaries therefore young, inexperienced nurses are attending to patients. They are good loyal members of the party. But political ideology is of little concern when you simply hope for the best medical treatment. Even a high ranking party member cares more about his family than the party. In the end their concerns become justified.

Other attacks against the party aren't so blatant as the hospital sequence. Fungui and Jiazhen learn of several people, even good standing party members, accused of being capitalist. We never find out exactly why these charges are brought forward. Is it a misunderstanding? Are they innocent? One man says everything will work out. The party will help find him innocent. Whether or not the character believes this in the moment he says it is irrelevant. The point is, you are whatever the party says you are.   

And so we go back to Fungui's last line and Jiazhen's simple request. Both sentiments are uplifting and sad at the same time for the exact same reasons. Uplifting for the hope they represent and sad for our knowledge that life probably will not get better. The oppression of the people will continue. And yet somehow as humans we must find the strength to continue to hope. Life will get better and better. 

The 1990s were the beginning of an interesting time in Chinese cinema. Many new films from filmmakers like Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige were finding distribution in the United States. Kaige's "Farewell My Concubine" (1993) won the Palm d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first Chinese language film to do so. In 1994, for the first time, American films would be shown in China. For a brief period of time Chinese cinema as all the rage among American film critics.

And "To Live" had its defenders. Receiving "two thumbs up" from movie critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, Siskel referred to it as "a great film" on their TV show and described it as an "epic story told at a very personal level". Ebert, in his Chicago Sun-Times review wrote, "it exists on the screen as a fascinating testament about ordinary human lives conducted under terrifying conditions". While Chicago Tribune movie critic, the great Michael Wilmington declared it "one of the most moving and important films of 1994" and continued in his review to state it "demonstrates that a truly innovative and revolutionary tale is sometimes best spun in gentle, reasonable tones." It appeared in the number six spot on Wilmington's year-end top ten list. Other critics such as Andrew Sarris at the New York Observer and Godfrey  Cheshire at the New York Press placed it on their annual year end lists as well. And finally, New York Times critic Janet Maslin also placed it among her list of the best films of the year writing, "this great storyteller displayed extraordinary gifts for distilling major political and cultural events into intimate human drama."

However the government censorship of "To Live" appears now in hindsight to have been the beginning of a shift in Yimou's films. Many of Yimou's most recent films have not found distribution in the U.S. His film "One Second" (2020) was twice denied entry into two different film festivals. It has not been shown in this country. His film "Cliff Walkers" (2021) was released here but has not been made available on DVD or blu-ray. It was the same story with this year's "Red Full River" (2024). Despite being given a theatrical release, it has not been made available for home viewing. This is contrary to the fact Yimou's current films can be described as Chinese propaganda. His "Hero" was very sympathetic to the government for example. "Cliff Walkers" was a story of political resistance and courage in favor of the Communist party. The political influence over art is most troubling. Released in the United States at the same time as "To Live" was director Zhuangzhuang Tian's "The Blue Kite" (1994) which dealt with a similar time period. Both are equally impressive but it too was banned by the Chinese government and its director was banned for 10 years from making films. Think of all the amazing stories these men have been denied telling.

There is no way to deny the power and emotional sweep of Yimou's "To Live". In answer to the question I have been asking all year, I was right to include this film among my choices for the best films of 1994. I can't determine yet if it was in fact the very best film of the year, as I believe 1994 was an amazing movie year with titles such as "Forrest Gump" (1994), "Bullets Over Broadway" (1994), Krzysztof Kieslowski's "Three Color Trilogy" and "The Shawshank Redemption" (1994) to name a few. I would need to go back and rewatch those films as well. What I can say with a bit more assurance is "To Live" does stand as one of Yimou's very best films and represents a style of storytelling I wish Yimou would go back to making. However at this point, I'd just like to be able to see his films period!

After 30 years "To Live" is an uplifting and sad film. A tale about political oppression and the power of the human spirit. It features emotional performances from Gong Li and You Ge. And follows in the great traditional of director Zhang Yimou's humanist films. It remains one of the best films of 1994.