Not One Less

Starring:Minzhi Wei, Huike Zhang, Zhenda Tian, Enman Gao, Zhimei Sun, Yuying Feng, Fanfan Li, Yichang Zhang, Xu Zhanqing, Hanzhi Liu, Ma Guolin, Wu Wanlu, Liu Ru, Wang Shulan, Fu Xinmin, Mei Bai, Zhang Mingshan, Jiao Jie, Rong Huimin, Sun Zhiwei
Director: Yimou Zhang
Studio: Sony Pictures
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

Zhang Yimou's (Raise the Red Lantern) tale of a plucky adolescent substitute teacher in a rural Chinese village, cast entirely with nonactors and shot on location, is an astute example of censorship politics. Taking on touchy issues with a veneer of can-do spirit and happy-ending fantasy, his film is at once rousing and eye-opening. Wei Minzhi is a stubborn young woman who takes a substitute teaching job in a tiny provincial town because they can't afford anyone else. When one troublemaking boy heads off to the city to help support his starving family, it's not a sense of responsibility that drives her rescue mission, it's money: She won't receive her bonus if any students are missing. Her efforts to raise money for the city trip pulls the class together in a sense of purpose, and even drives the lessons, but when she finally reaches the city she's shocked to discover an urban jungle of lost and runaway kids. Yimou shoots with an easy naturalism that suggests a well-intentioned docudrama in spots, due to narrative contrivances and a few self-conscious performances, but his compromises ultimately make his shocking look at China's rural poverty, adolescent workers, urban juvenile homelessness, and woefully underfunded educational system more potent. In the heat of the film's uplifting climax, the once-mischievous boy pulls the film back down to earth with his reflection on his big-city adventure: "I had to beg for food. I'll never forget that." --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful film from Zhang Yimou.......2007-06-10

Somewhat didactic and sentimental, this film from Zhang Yimou is nevertheless irresistible. An unusual foray from Zhang into realistic filmmaking, Not One Less tells the tale of a young teenager in a Chinese village who is named as substitute teacher in the local school when the head teacher has to visit her ailing mother. Her skills as a teacher are barely adequate, and her students are just a few years younger than she is, yet she makes up her obvious shortcomings as a teacher with an utmost zeal in accomplishing her mission. Her superior has told her that not one of her students must drop out of school, so when one of the more troublemaking boys heads to the big city in order to support his starving family, she has to go there to get him back. The movie is refreshingly sincere in stating that she does not search the boy out of a sense of responsibility, but because of money, since she won't receive any bonus if any of her students are missing. The best part of the movie shows the naïve teacher trying to find her lost student in the urban jungle of the city. Shot with a wonderful amateur cast, this look at rural China is beguiling.

no actors.......2007-06-01

What's beautiful about this movie is that the story is true and all the people in the village are real. They are not actors. In playing themselves in this movie, it brought a sense of reality to the story and the poverty issues in rural China. It is a simple story and yet, it is so moving. Very beautiful production.

Beauty in simplicity.......2007-03-18

What good are special effects and action movies if not for their escapist value? But there is much more good to be learned from movies like Zhang Yi-mou's "Not One Less", for what we are watching may be part of everyday reality. In a small school in a remote rural area of China, a thirteen year old girl substitutes for a teacher, who has to visit an ailing parent. This is a job that not too many people want, so a girl not much older than the kids seems to be the only choice. The girl is obviously not cut out to teach 28 kids, whose ages range from kindergarten level to fourth grade. On her first day of teaching, she spends a good part of the day writing the lesson on the board, with the students clueless about what to do. Yet the teacher seems more clueless in what to do next after she is done with her writing. When a dispute breaks out in class, the young teacher has absolutely no idea what her responsibilities are. Yet when events take an interesting turn, she keeps her hopes up and makes the situation into a teachable moment, to the surprise of the village mayor. With steely stubbornness, she heads to the big city to uphold her mission to lose not one less kid from her school not just because she needs the money but also because she has become attached to her students, especially this one. And boy does she get more than she bargained for at the end!

There are some very touching moments in this movie, and their effectiveness lies in their sheer simplicity. We get to know what one of the more responsible and sensitive girls in the class feels about the poverty of her school. Her tears were from embarrassment, having revealed to the rest of the school, against her will, her personal feelings. Perhaps she knew there were other possibilities in life, but she felt helpless to attain those possibilities. Another unforgettable scene was the twenty or so kids sharing two cans of Coke, passing it around, with not one kid feeling entitled to more than a single sip. The hunger and desperation that beset both teacher and lost student in the anonymity of the big city. How the TV camera has triggered the teacher's last call for hope. When the boy recognized the teacher on TV and realized that she was specifically looking for him, how could anyone not be touched by his feeling of happiness, relief, and self-pity?

It is unfortunate that lack of resources, kids just dropping out of school in order to work, help the family, or move to the city to work, and the limitations in choices when the kids grow up are realities in many impoverished schools, both rural and urban. "Not One Less" is a movie that brings us closer to reality and makes us think about what we can do or contribute to improve other people's lives.

Excellent movie, shows a true picture of modern China.......2007-01-10

This movie is truly wonderfully done. I appreciate the lightheartedness of the characters, and the deep resonances of director Zhang Yimou's commentary on academics in modern rural China. The language is particularly good for students learning Mandarin Chinese, as it shows an excellent example of the differences between spoken Chinese in the countryside and in the cities. There are English subtitles for beginners as well. I highly recommend it.

Caught me by suprise.......2006-11-15

One day I was channel surfing and AznTV was playing this movie. I must have caught it fairly close to the beginning, where the mayor was trying to get the new substitute teacher to come in to the classroom.

I'm not sure why, but it kinda grabbed me, and just sort of kept me watching. I don't speak any dialect of Chinese, so the subtitles were a bonus. I have no idea how correct the subtitles are. At one point, the mayor calls the local troublemaker a "farthead". That was probably the clincher.

In any event, this is really a movie worth watching. Most of the other reviewers will give you good indications of the plot, but it basically seems to be a movie which points out how callous and uncaring many people can be, towards those less fortunate. That's a message which can easily break any cultural barrier.

But one thing I did walk away with was a sense of culture shock. Sitting in my comfortable middle-class American living room, drinking coffee. Watching a group of 20 children sharing two cans of Coke, most probably never have even tasted a Coke. This kind of gives you a stark view of what life must be like. Other scenes and conflicts bring this to bear, such as the woman at the television station who "was only doing her job" by effectively forcing the child to sleep outside the gates...

We Are Traffic! & Return of the Scorcher Critical Mass DVD

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We Are Traffic! & Return of the Scorcher Critical Mass DVD

Manufacturer: Green Planet Films
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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2 Seconds

ASIN: B000G1MS8A

Product Description

We Are Traffic! chronicles the history and development of the "Critical Mass" bicycle movement, one of the most spirited and dynamic social/political movements of the apathetic 90s. In over 200 cities in 14 different countries, Critical Mass has now become a monthly ritual of reclaiming the streets by bicycle activists riding en masse. With traffic congestion, pollution, and road rage on the rise, growing numbers around the world are advocating for transportation alternatives, and Critical Mass is at the cutting edge of this mindset. We Are Traffic! tracks this leaderless, grassroots movement from its beginnings in San Francisco in 1992 to its spread across the globe. With a radical direct-action approach the participants of Critical Mass are celebrating the bicycle and in turn taking on perhaps the century's most sacred cow: the automobile. Return of the Scorcher This half-hour documentary looks at bike culture and bike lifestyles around the world with beautiful and inspiring scenes of bike use filmed in China, The Netherlands, Denmark, and the U.S. In the 1890s, before automobiles ruled the roads, bicyclists were referred to as "Scorchers" because of their blazing speed. A century later, in a world filled with car-related environmental and social problems, Return of the Scorcher discovers an inspired and evolving bicycling renaissance. This documentary touches on a surprising variety of subjects including romance, rebellion, early feminism, and spirituality - all viewed within the context of bicycling. Return of the Scorcher questions our obsession with "progress" and status and presents a diverse cross-section of cycling visionaries who see the bicycle as a life-affirming vehicle for change. Featured interviewees include: Marcia Lowe, Michael Replogle, Iain Boal, Ellen Fletcher, George Bliss and others.

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