rural - FilmRoot

So Long My Son – An Epic Cross Generational Drama

So Long My Son Film Difficulty Ranking: 4

If you’re looking for an epic cross generational drama with tragedy, family rivalry, and common people subject to the government, you’ve come to the right place. So Long My Son is the story of two families driven apart by China’s infamous one child policy and their differing fortunes. It’s just over three hours, so there’s plenty of time to build each of the characters, but it also doesn’t feel too long. This might be because of the narrative that pieces together different time periods without ever leaving the present. It forces us to figure out which part of the protagonist’s lives we are at, but also slowly reveals more and more about the characters and their lives to add to our mental picture. It’s like a Memento of cross generational drama with a dramatic Chinese one child policy backdrop.

From: China, Asia
Watch: Trailer, Vimeo
Next: A Touch of Sin, Summer Palace, The Son's Room

Ixcanul (Guatemala) – Witness the Power of the Volcano

Ixcanul Film Difficulty Ranking: 3

In Ixcanul, the volcano is a reminder of the power that nature holds over our lives. Follow Maria as she tries to find a way to escape from her rural community and the looming presence of the volcano.

Why Watch Ixcanul?

Hear some Kaqchikel – there’s a lot of people in Central America who don’t speak Spanish
To spend some time in rural Guatemala
Arguably a great feminist film
Feel the constant presence of the volcano

The Breakdown

Ixcanul starts with a close up of a teenage girl’s face. Her mum appears behind her and starts tidying her hair, cleaning her face, and tying her colourful head band. Maria (the teenage girl) looks blankly at the camera. It’s clear that she’s being prepared for something that’s out of her control. Is she getting married? Whatever it is, she seems too stunned to care.

The next scene flashes back to the two of them feeding rum to some pigs to make them horny. The girl waits around and watches the pigs as they copulate. It’s clear she’s bored. The only things she does at home is help her mum with the cooking and care for their livestock. Therefore it’s not a surprise that she finds another teenager that works nearby to have sex with.

The only problem is that her parents have just promised her hand in marriage to their boss. He’s the reason why they’re living in their house with the things they own as he’s the one renting it to them. So when her mum finds out Maria is pregnant she tells her off for ‘not counting her moons’ and puts together a plan to try and get rid of the baby.

The Power of the Volcano

Whilst the volcano never erupts, it’s power is always felt through the film. In every shot of the landscape, it looms in the background as if it is controlling their lives. In a way it is.

It is the wall that is blocking them from prosperity. On their side of the volcano, there is nothing, just barren land and boredom. But on the other side there is the United States and Guatemala City which both promise a better life. Just look at Maria’s fiance who travels to see them once every few weeks. He comes from the other side of the volcano and owns a car, the house Maria and her family live in, and is able to speak Spanish. He is obviously from the same part of Guatemala as her (as he also speaks Kaqchikel), and therefore the same lifestyle, but he has managed to find prosperity by venturing past the volcano.

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Conclusion and What to Watch Next

Ixcanul has great cinematography and strong female characters ensnared by the power of the volcano. It is the blockade between their barren farm and a better life as on the other side is the city and the influence of the U.S. Can they make it to the other side?

If you want to see another film about a young kid/teenager trying to break the monotony of their life, check out Wadjda. It’s a coming-of-age story of a young girl in Saudi Arabia who is desperate to ride a bike, despite all the pressures on her to become a woman.

Or if you want to see more films about young adults trying to find a better life, check out:

Makala – a documentary about a young man trying to transport a bike load of charcoal across arid landscape to be able to buy a new roof for his house.
City of God – the heart-racing action film about a few kids trying to escape the favelas of Rio de Janeiro.
Beijing Bicycle – the story of a teenager struggling to make a bit of change as a bicycle delivery boy in Beijing.

The Road Home (China) – Fall in Love with Zhang Yimou’s China

The Road Home Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

Are you looking for a love story that will warm your heart? Or are you looking to explore rural China and all it’s customs and culture? Either way, check out The Road Home, a beautiful love story set in rural China directed by Zhang Yimou. Currently available to watch here on Amazon (for rent)

Why Watch The Road Home?

If you’re in the mood for a romantic love story
You’re a fan of Zhang Yimou’s martial arts films (Hero, House of Flying Daggers) and you want to see him explore something different
To learn about customs (and superstitions) in rural China
See how different school is in this film

The Breakdown

The first part of The Road Home is shot in the present day in dull black and white. Luo Yusheng arrives at his family home in rural China having traveled from his home in the city. His father has just died, and he’s come home to keep his mum company and sort out the funeral arrangements.

Tradition says you need to carry the dead all the way home whilst shouting out ‘this is the way home’ to remind them how to return. Yusheng’s mum is adamant that he must honor this tradition for their father. However, this tradition has rarely been carried out since the Cultural Revolution in the 60s and 70s. Whilst he’s figuring out what to do with his father’s body, the narrative switches to the story of Lusheng’s parents romantic courtship which has become a legend in their hometown.

Is this film a challenge to the state of Communism in China?

On the surface, The Road Home appears to be a regular love story. But, if you pay a bit more attention, you’ll see an underlying critique of the state of Communism in China.

In The Road Home, Zhang Yimou critiques the loss of culture. You’ll hear this first when the mayor says that the traditional burial mentioned above has not been done since the Cultural Revolution (a subtle jab against the Cultural Revolution for taking away part of Chinese Culture). But, more obviously the critique is present in the film’s portrayal of the past.

Whilst the present is shot in a dull black and white, the past is shot in vibrant colour. The colour reflects the emotion and hope embedded in the past, when the Communist Revolution was still young. In contrast the dull black and white of the present symbolises how the hope and optimism of the Communist Revolution has disintegrated and has taken culture and emotion with it.

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Conclusion & What To Watch Next

The Road Home is a beautiful love story set in rural China. Luckily for all of you who don’t want to settle for pure cheesy romance, there’s much more to this film than initially meets the eye. Because if you look carefully, you’ll see the subtle critique of the direction of Chinese Communism.

If you want more romance, click here to explore all the films under in our Love film category.

Or if you’re looking for more Chinese film, head over to our Chinese film page. We recommend checking out A Touch of Sin for a more brutal depiction of life in contemporary China.

The Trader (Georgia) – Get a Glimpse of Life in Rural Georgia

The Trader Film Difficulty Ranking: 3

Ever thought about going to Georgia? If you haven’t, you probably should (especially if you like hiking). In the meantime check out The Trader on Netflix. It will give you a 25 minute glimpse of life in a rural Georgian town connected to modernity by a ‘back of the van’ trader from the city.

Image result for the trader netflix

Why Watch The Trader?

Everyone has time to watch it AND it’s available to watch on Netflix
To get a glimpse of rural Georgia
It won the top short-documentary prize at the Sundance Film Festival
To witness the power of potatoes – they’re food and currency!

The Breakdown

First we’re introduced to Gela as he browses the stocks of various shops in the city he’s from. He’s looking for items to fill his van (his moving shop) before he drives into the country to sell them. As a trader, his aim is to pick any items his customers are likely to need or want, which he can then trade for a portion of the year’s latest potato crop.

It might sound simple, but it’s not. The village he drives to appears half deserted. The grey corrugated iron roofs match the grey skies and compliments the brown dirt ground. It doesn’t look like a place where you’d expect to make any sales. However, sure enough, a few residents and their kids gather round Gela and his shop (the back of his van) and start haggling with him for a few of his wares. After 2 days at the village, he ends up with a few kilos of potatoes to take home. Not a great crop.

But it could be worse, he could be one of the residents living in the remote village. He could be like the old man who regrets never getting an education. Or he could be like the young boy who has absolutely no idea of what he wants to be when he grows up, even after his mum prompts him to say ‘a journalist’. The place is completely devoid of dreams and full of regret.

Is the Trader to Blame?

Hard to say. Gela, the trader, is the only connection for this community to modernity. He is the only one who appears to make the trip to this remote village and give the population a market to sell their excess potatoes.

However, the market is tilted in his favour. The village community have to accept all the goods he brings to sell even if it is a load of useless rubbish. If they keep their excess potatoes they’ll only go rotten as it doesn’t look like they’ll have another opportunity to sell. Therefore they have to accept whatever Gela offers. So they’ll continue to buy second rate goods and as a result, their village never progresses as far as the contents of Gela’s van.

Conclusion and What to Watch Next

If a picture tells a thousand words, The Trader packs enough into it’s 25 minutes to constitute a few essays. Not because it’s complex, but because the dialogue and images so concisely document life in rural Georgia and the importance of one man, the trader.

If the rural town in this film struck you, I recommend checking out Kazakhstan’s The Wounded Angel, also set in a remote, hopeless town. If you’re into more arty film, there’s also Lav Diaz’s From What is Before which charts the effects of a dictatorship on a remote rural town in the Philippines.

Or, if you’re after more great documentaries, I strongly recommend you check out Makala. It follows the complete process of a charcoal maker from cutting down a tree 3 days walk from the nearest city to selling the final product (after walking for 3 days) in said city. It won Cannes Critic Week because it’s one of the most beautifully captured films you’ll ever see.

Crystal Swan – The American Dream in Belarus

Crystal Swan Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

In Crystal Swan you’ll meet Velya, an aspiring club DJ living in Minsk who doesn’t fit in Belarus. So she tries to get a U.S. visa to go live a better life abroad. The only problem is that she doesn’t have a respectable job to put on her visa application. So she puts down a fake job and adds a fake telephone number. However, when the visa officials say they will call her to confirm her application, she goes on a journey to rural Belarus to track down the number and try and make her American dream come true.

From: Belarus, Europe
Watch: Trailer
Next: Ladybird, Volver, Run Lola Run