The Family

Still living with an old couple is a woman and her teenage son. They are concerned about their daughter's future and intrude in both her choice of men and her hunt for an apartment. Their other two children live far away and never visit. The parents set off on a long trip and since we follow them for nearly five hours we get to know them intimately. When they finally get to where they first met we understand the geographical, temporal and ideological breadth of the trip they set out on. Once upon a time she was a teacher; he was a factory worker—during the Cultural Revolution nonetheless. The film peers into China today—an economically billowing nation where the tide doesn't always sweep the individual along with it. (Göteborg Film Festival)