Upstream

Beautifully made; all about work-life-what it means to be a family. One of the very few movies recently watched talking about real life and this is one such movie. Life can take any path, unpredictable; despite any challenges faced how one can help oneself bounce back and what it means to be a family to be with you and support you in whatever you wanted to do to stand up again during such times makes life meaningful and and builds the bond which stays stronger. Father Mother Spouse child. This movie captures all the aspects of it, including work, competition, relationship with friends and customers.

As I live in China, I am more than used to the sight of the zippy delivery drivers dressed in yellow either dodging in and out of traffic with their little scooters or hanging out in and around restaurants waiting for their next delivery. The film 'Upstream' is about one such story, a middle-aged man who has lost his job but still has a family and bills (lots of bills) and has to take on a job as a delivery rider for one of Chongqing's biggest food couriers.

The film portrays the difficult nature of the job and dealing with unreasonable customers, hostile traffic and trying to earn more and more money by becoming king of the delivery drivers where our hero 'Gao' needs to be top dog to pay off his mortgage installments.

I really enjoyed it, a good story, funny with characters you can warm to. I think this is one Chinese comedy that can be enjoyed by anyone anywhere. A ten out of ten.

If you have spent more than 2 days even as a tourist in China, chances are good you had a near-miss traffic accident with a "knight" in yellow-clad armour.

This movie gives us a closer look at the overlooked. In China's biggest cities, the yellow "knights" as they are lovingly called buzz around like bees. Always trying to take a shortcut and running a red light to make a quick buck, the service economy runs on poor non-registered workers risking their life for little pay.

Although thoroughly enjoyable, there's two aspects that hold this movie back slightly: first, the performances are good but the wife actress sticks out like a sore thumb. Poorly acted and poorer written still, it takes you out of the story every time she's on screen. Second, there's several parts where the movie really feels like a propaganda piece paid for by Kuai Di companies. Delivering bravely in the rain, to rooftops, to hospitals, all to become the "top driver" and save a kid with leukemia, it actually looks exactly like a popular Kaui Di ad that used to run on Chinese TV.

So it's 4/5 for this delivery.

The film has a great narrative arc, is very funny but really real, and gives a look at one section of China's hard workers: the food delivery riders.

Upstream is acted very well, and doesn't ever miss a beat in story development or comic timing. It's a great feel-good tale, too.

For a few years now, this profession hasn't been part of the gig economy as defined in the sense of such Western jobs that come with a lack of rights for employees.

In 2021, China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) and other regulatory bodies mandated that local food delivery platforms provide drivers with a minimum wage, access to insurance, and improved working conditions. The order also required platforms to enroll delivery workers in social insurance programs.

China does listen to its people. China's food delivery giants Meituan and Ele.me are to impose mandatory rest breaks for delivery drivers to improve their health and safety.

The changes in policy come after a public outcry over a September incident when a 55-year-old delivery rider collapsed and died in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou.

China is a point of interest now of course and one way to glimpse into its society without actually visiting is to watch this movie. The layers of propaganda from the countries of the West about China are thick, but even this film, a comedy but also real, can dissolve a few.

This film helps us be less hateful and/or believing of the entire mass media with its constant negative framing of China. At the same time it's a ball watching it, a film so real we can feel it and relate, while laughing and shedding a tear too.

Kinda realistic with the way they displayed some customers' behaviours. You may say "They won't act like that, etc..." but in reality, I, myself, have encountered such people, and lots of them saw themselves as gods and demanded others to obey them.

The film also successfully emphasised the main subject of each scene, using shades and colours, giving audiences the impression of how harsh the industry is, especially in the first half of the film.

But the largest disadvantage is they didn't go deeper into other side characters, mainly riders, aside from Big Black, Stingie, and Dashan.

One debatable thing is whether riders actually walked in and helped the restaurant owner or not. I would say that 40% of the time, they do, but only if the restaurant is packed with orders. It happens in some countries where people have sympathy for each other.

The last thing is that this is a film created in a country where the delivery industry is rapidly changing and growing, so it just depends on your nationality, and for me, who lives in a country like that, I would say that this film is realistic, giving me an insight into the mechanism of such a powerful industry.