Coming Home Film Review

The movie is about a family of three: Professor Lu Yanshi, his wife Feng Wanyu as well as his daughter Dandan.Lu is arrested for spearheading political activism in China. He escapes the detention but is recaptured too soon after Dendan turns him in.Feng is so much affected by the turn of events that she experiences amnesia. Dandan works in local textile factory to support her. When Lu comes back, Feng is unable to recognize them, the challenge remains to help Feng remember him.

The movie is in a context where the China populace had a variety of jobs. However, education is seemingly the source of employment for most people. Professor Lu Yanshi was a college tutor with a family of three. His wife Feng Wanyu was a teacher in one of the many high schools in China. Their teenage daughter, Dandan, was a renowned ballet dancer in a local troupe. Ballet dance was a source of income for many people in China and provided a livelihood for both the instructors and the dancers. Also, the government has provided employment to people as policemen. The transport sector provides opportunities for the attendants at the stations and the captains of the trains. Additionally, there are factories in the country which provides employment windows. The textile industry is one such company that employed Dandan after she could not continue with her dancing job. Furthermore, politics is another rather more unconventional source of income for many Chinese leaders. This is seen when Lu tries to play political activism and is almost immediately arrested until after the end of the phase of Cultural Revolution (Cai, 2014).

People seem to mainly get jobs only after they have volunteered as well as attaining some qualifications. For example one would be required to excel in their academics to secure such white collar jobs as teaching in colleges and high schools which were roles played by Lu and Feng respectively. Additionally, one’s talent could have landed them onto a livelihood. This is evident when Dandan almost secures her a place in the ballet troupe. Moreover, the scenario where we see her secure a job with a textile factory is an indication that one had to move from one area to another to secure employment in the various economic sectors of China. The fact that people were serving as policemen shows that one could get such a job by being patriotic with the China nationalism. This is evident when the police arrest such citizens as Lu, who were infamous for castigating the government. Finally is the politicians who were at the core of the country’s administration. To secure any political positions, one had to face a lot of confrontation even from some members of one’s family (Dandan) as well as the incumbent leaders who had Lu arrested.

The means that stands out as a window that helped people in the movie meet their basic needs, was the proceeds from their jobs. Professor Lu was able to fend for himself and the family through the salary he earned as a college tutor. His wife Feng was able to continue supporting her daughter even after her husband was arrested. Finally, Dandan managed to take care of her mother by securing a job in a local textile factory (Cai, 2014).

Professor Lu Yanshi was in no way satisfied with the political system of the country and the general living conditions under such a political system; he resorted to political activism which saw him behind bars. His wife was no happy with his arrest which saw her keep yearning for his release.Dandan on the other side was not quite happy with her living condition being associated with a fugitive of the law which was why she betrayed her father.

The government was entirely responsible for the miserable life that Professor Lu Yanshi leads as well as the amnesia condition that caught up with his wife, Feng. This is because the strict policies against political activism result in the arrest of the hapless professor. The police also turned a daughter against her father when Dandan turned his father in.The government could redress the issues by enacting more lenient policies on political activism (Cai, 2014).

The issue about Cultural Revolution has not been fully explained in the movie. There are no any criteria to know whether the revolution is underway or has ended. Additionally, the connection between the releasing of the professor and the ending of the revolution is not known.

The reason as to why Feng looks forlorn is not clear at the beginning and only comes clear as one peruses the course materials. This soon becomes apparent that the estranged school teacher was justified to remain pensive and moody after her husband is arrested for no obvious reasons (Cai, 2014).

Reference

Cai, S. (2014). Zhang Yimou’s Coming Home: a depoliticized melodrama adapted from Putlocker