An Unfinished Film

I CANNOT STOP CRYING. The film is only not longer than 2 hours but that really is a mere documentary of the very start and the followed 3 years of worse than hell we've actually been thru. We may have moved on now but THAT 3 YEARS of pure oppression and suffering is not to be forgiven and forgotten. The girl that cried for her mom following the ambulance carrying her mom's body to cremation without being allowed to see her one last time. The girl locked in the building whose mom jumped out of the window was just lying right outside, and she was not allowed to come out. The fire, the people who cannot escape for the building was locked with chains. And the fact that you are not even allowed to talk about any of it.

This experimental film draws its essence from temporal dislocation-repurposing old movie footage and blending it with newly shot material to form a new narrative. The resulting intertwining of timelines creates a hazy, dreamlike atmosphere. Especially under the shadow of the pandemic, it pulls the audience into this suspended space where time and memory dissolve into one.

The frequent use of phone-shot footage embedded within the cinematic frame adds a layer of realism, though it also feels jarring-hovering somewhere between documentary and fiction. The dramatic tension reaches its peak under themes of lockdown and conflict, evoking a collective memory. Viewers are transported back to that surreal period.

Though the film may not reach a wide audience, it stands as a vital visual record of an extraordinary time. The dialogue often references things invisible to the audience, leaving them amused or confused-like the director's private jokes or self-mockery. Still, the existence of this film ensures that one day, someone will watch it. And that alone is enough.

The first half, which moves from the pseudo-documentary format of the crew rebooting a decade-old project in late 2019, to positive footage shot ten years ago, eventually stopping at a screen shot of a documentary format blooper reel. And the second half gradually shifts from a pseudo-documentary at an isolation point to a cell phone vertical screen pseudo-documentary, and finally returns to real web footage. In the epilogue everyone gathers for a drink, speechless, just watching the real documentary material. The director's purpose is also called out. That is, under such a drastic change of the times, man-made movies will be forced to give way to real documentary material at the same time. Forced by the objective environment and the lack of filming conditions, active by the creators to recognize the powerlessness of man-made scripts, even if things have passed, the process of trying to restore the story in any case is not as powerful as the real material. Therefore, this movie is also very self-reflexive while being expressive at the same time. That is, through a pseudo-documentary movie format, it tells everyone about the powerlessness of drama and pseudo-documentary movies. That's why the rating for this movie itself is contradictory. On the other hand, in terms of scarcity, it is indeed one of the few non-main theme movies in mainland China with an epidemic as its background. After making these points clear, I believe we can all make our own judgments. The movie's score and awards thus become less important.

Thanks to the collaboration between people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, this film was able to be released on streaming platforms so quickly. Its style is very different from Lou Ye's previous works-it hardly feels like a traditional movie at all. It's more like a documentary or a vlog. The entire production takes place only in a hotel and a studio, which keeps costs low, but shooting in such confined spaces, combined with many video call scenes, is actually quite challenging.

The story does have tension at first, but later it turns into a monotonous sequence of events mixed with online video flashbacks. The narrative evokes memories of that particular time, creating a sense of resonance, but as the film progresses, that emotional connection gradually fades and becomes dull.

The whole film essentially relies on Qin Hao's performance to carry it. His acting is indeed solid and compelling-without it, the audience would likely find the film even more tedious.

Watched @Vancouver, CA.

This is a mockumentary-style film. During the first third, the constantly shaking camera almost made me nauseous. However, after the halfway point, the film gradually finds its rhythm and becomes increasingly engaging.

For such a major public health event, it was astonishing how quickly the pandemic vanished from public discourse after the lockdowns were lifted-no one talked about it, no one reflected on it, as if it had all been just a dream. Especially in mainland China, discussing the pandemic became a taboo, even though it had been the very center of life for three whole years.

As I watched the film, those buried memories suddenly came back to life. I was struck by the realization that I had once lived through it all so vividly. This chapter of history should not be forgotten - it is the path we have walked to get here.

Throughout the film, I was deeply moved more than once, with tears welling up in my eyes. As someone who lived through the pandemic, I didn't need the film to show me what happened next-I already knew. But when someone holds up those moments for you to see again, they still hit you hard. At the end of the film, the theater echoed with applause-both for the film, and for all of us.

Thank you to the director and the cast for their courage in making this film. I know very well the immense pressure they faced-this film will not be released, or even allowed to be mentioned, in mainland China. Yet still, someone far from home was moved by it, enough to seek out this platform and write an English review-for the path we've walked, and for the sake of conscience.