I have nothing but praise for director Li Dongmei's sophomore effort, 2020's Mama. The story is based upon her experience as a 12-year old, during a seven-day period in the 1990s, but told in the contemporary setting of the countryside and a small town of Hunan Province that could even be as late as 2019 (this is deduced by observing the details in dress, vehicles, storefront offerings and such that are more recent than the 1990s when these incidents actually took place).
I found the film to be quite amazing in more ways than one. As a student of Asian cinema (I've watched more than 400 Asian films in the past two years), this bears all the hallmarks of some of the best films to date: namely, an understated story-telling style full of long takes where the camera does not move, but may often pan to follow the action; understated performances by the characters (here I believe are all non-professionals, but also not related in real life); and a penchant for simplicity of plot and realism that is tangible. I've visited China many times, and I couldn't help but view this film as an observer of action and nuance. By that, I mean that the story has no narration - it's more like what you would SEE if you were part of this community, or family. It has no soundtrack music to guide your emotions - only the ambient sounds of the countryside. And it has sparse dialog that doesn't do much to identify the relationships or explain the storyline. You really need to pay attention.
As a matter of fact, I had to watch the film twice to better understand what was going on, and even then, go back a third time to certain conversations. If there is a fault here, it's most likely the unpreparedness of the viewer to figure out the story, as most of us would expect a bit more exposition. But there is none. It's up to you to pay attention and connect the dots.
That being said, I'll give it my best guess as to what's going on here (I'm still not 100% sure of who is who, but that's okay - it's a minor concern, really). The protagonist (if you need to assign that role) is the 12-year-old version of Li Dongmei, called Xiaoxian in this film. She lives in a remote house in the mountainous countryside of Hunan Province with her paternal grandparents and youngest sister. Her father is away, working in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, which is not unusual for China's rural population, both then and now. Her mother, nine months pregnant by the looks of it, is staying with her sister-in-law's parents in town, close to the local hospital. Her residence is usually with her husband's parents, but the remoteness isn't conducive to safety in the case of giving birth, and she has apparently moved in with the sister-in-law and her parents to be closer to a hospital.
We follow some simple routines on the part of the young Xiaoxian - eating, walking in the countryside, walking to school (and quite a long way it is for her and some classmates, which emphasizes the remoteness of her house). The second youngest sister is also going to school, but she stays in town with her mom, and with auntie and her parents. Her auntie's husband (her mom's brother) is also away, but I get the feeling that it's not so far, or perhaps just off working days at a time.
The storyline begins to develop when mom and sister-in-law are home one day and the phone rings. The sister-in-law picks it up. Apparently she is talking to her husband about his sister, Xiaoxian's pregnant mother. It seems the living situation is about to change. The woman's parents, and herself, have decided that Xiaoxian's mother can no longer stay there. The sister-in-law asks over the phone, "Who is more important, our own kids or your sister's?" Xiaoxian's mother overhears. The slowly unfolding crisis is thus set in motion.
I won't go into much more detail, but the plot continues in the same way it has thus far, with no narration, no soundtrack music, just a few bits of dialog to provide some clues - mom going back to the remote house in the mountains; mom asking the youngest daughter for help with the character for "guan" as in Dongguan (apparently writing a letter to the husband to explain the situation). She's 36, with four daughters already, the three youngest living at home now with her, the eldest already married and a mother of an infant girl (I presume it's her eldest daughter - a scene that seems random with two new characters introduced is not explained, with a young woman and her husband caring for their infant in what appears to be a small plant, possibly in another city or town).
Spoiler alert: But the story centers around this understated, but immensely consequential situation of the pregnant mom being "sent back" to the remote countryside house by her unsupportive sister-in-law and her parents, and the ensuing drama that is all but destined to befall her. All told through bits and pieces of daily activities, until the struggle for life and death actually unfolds - in the middle of the night, no less. I'll stop there with the plot development but, though the tragedy lacks the usual dramatic music and manipulated heart-strings, it is no less sad to observe an outcome that could have been avoided. Human nature is not always kind, even to those we may be related to.
The cinematography is amazing for a movie of this size - a rather small project, but one with top-notch crew. There is an amazing use of natural light, low light, and even many scenes filmed in the darkness of night, with no annoying and unrealistic arc lights to distract from the beauty and isolation of the Chinese countryside. During the seven days of the story, there are four deaths, several births, and the quotidian of daily life just as you might expect it to be (and if you did not expect to witness such trivial things as quiet dinners, a grandmother lugging a basket full of vegetable greens, or children walking to school through the gorgeous countryside, then you may be enlightened to see these things told with such wonderful simplicity). The non-professional actors are incredibly effective - no need to act when you are essentially just acting out your own lifestyle (or so I assume).
If you are interested in rural China, traditional Chinese culture, a family drama told with amazing realism, or just checking out one of China's newest filmmakers, then I would heartily recommend Mama. If you are looking to be told what to think and how to feel, and have every little action explained, or need exposition to understand what you are witnessing, then you may want to think twice about this film. But if you are looking for a story, a reality, that is tangible and convincing, this is for you. I did not hesitate giving this one a 10, even though I had to go back to watch it again. Any fault is not in the way the story is told, it's only in the viewer's capacity to understand what they are witnessing.
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