"If this is how the world works, would you bring a child into it?"
Powerful story of bullying, friendship, sacrifice, and the crucible Chinese kids go through in trying to get into the best universities, urged on by the platitudes of adults, so that they can have a better life. Zhou Dongyu and Jackson Yee turn in soulful performances as kids who are vulnerable in different ways, and Zhou Ye is perfectly evil as the main bully. Even with someone looking out for you, who will protect the protector? The film probably goes on a tad too long, but the way parts of the story are revealed and the emotions it plays on keep it riveting throughout.
Powerful story of bullying, friendship, sacrifice, and the crucible Chinese kids go through in trying to get into the best universities, urged on by the platitudes of adults, so that they can have a better life. Zhou Dongyu and Jackson Yee turn in soulful performances as kids who are vulnerable in different ways, and Zhou Ye is perfectly evil as the main bully. Even with someone looking out for you, who will protect the protector? The film probably goes on a tad too long, but the way parts of the story are revealed and the emotions it plays on keep it riveting throughout.