While Americans who are struggling with an economic recession and a declining job market look to Southeast Asia with envy, China’s prospering economy is not without problems of its own. The gap in wealth between the working middle class and the upper class continues to grow.
Every Chinese New Year, 120 million Chinese workers partake in a migration from their temporary homes near their factories, to be reunited with their families once a year.
In the Last Train Home , Chinese-Canadian filmmaker Lixan Fan chronicles this long voyage, by following Zhang Changhua and his wife Chen Suqin, as well as exploring the impact that this prolonged separation has on their two children, Yang and Qin.
The documentary is well done. The camera is never intrusive and takes on the role as an observer. Director Lixen Fan never forces scenes to take place, but instead allows the natural progression of events to unfold.
When Yang, the middle school son of Chen and Zhang, explains that being fifth in his class was good enough for him, it shows how the distance between him and his parents prevents his motivation. Bringing good grades home to show his grandmother, who is his care taker, does nothing to satisfy his thirst to please his parents. Yang does not feel close with his parents, but views them as merely visitors who come once a year to lecture him.
Qin, the teenage daughter, has taken the migration of her parents to the big industrial city of Guangzhou, as abandonment. She, like most teenagers, is angry and confused. She is very outspoken and rejects the traditional Chinese customs of addressing elders. Qin values family over money, and views her parents as just being greedy. She cannot see that her parents went to Guangzhou in order to support Qin and Yang because if they had stayed, they would be dirt poor.
Qin and Yang are prime examples of how the younger generations of China have lost the traditional values of hard work and sacrifice. These same values which have fueled China’s economic boom are now ironically being undermined by it. People in the farthest corners of China become enthralled in the stories of easy wealth and glamorous lifestyles. They forgo all the traditions of Chinese family values in order to gain monetary happiness, which many unfortunately do not succeed.
Several of the Chinese New Year migrations are filmed and it shows how much Chen and Zhang struggle to get home to their children. Huge crowds of people are crammed while they wait in the station for days. Workers fight over the last ticket stubs. The scenes show how inhumane this entire journey becomes, all for the joy of seeing their loved ones.
The Last Train Home explores the delicate balance between money and family and how disruptive one side can be when pursuing the other. The documentary simply exposes the intricacies of China’s economic boom and how nothing can be gained without losing something.
Last Train Home will be playing this Friday, August 13th in Brooklyn at Rooftop Films:http://www.looklistenplay.com/last-train-home-rooftop-films
