China implemented the one-child policy in the 1980s in order to curb the population growth, ending it by 2015 due to the shifting dependency ratio. So Long, My Son depicts two families while the policy was implemented, alternating between past and present to depict how the fickle finger of fate changed their destinies in a single tragedy. It’s intimate and heart-wrenching, and the thirty years haven’t been enough to soothe the guilt, fear, and pain that struck them. Clocking in at three hours, the film may not be a quick and easy watch, but So Long, My Son is the rare depiction of how China’s rapid changes personally affected its people, for better or worse.
"A lingering, heart-breaking epic of great subtlety, specificity and ultimately universal power."
— Josh Slater-Williams
"The film finds, then repeatedly breaks, your heart, before a subtly momentous finale..."
— Jessica Kiang
Two married couples adjust to the vast social and economic changes taking place in China from the 1980s to the present.
After a tragic accident, paths diverge for the Liu and Shen families, leading to a lifetime quest for the truth and reconciliation.
The way the film alternates between times and families makes it all the more tragic how luck can be.
Incredible film.
Berlin
2 wins
