It
is time for Meet the Parents, Naxi
style. Luo Li is finally going home to meet her fiancé Mu Shu’s parents in Lijang,
deep within Yunnan province. Unfortunately, they are still rather attached to
his ex, A Mei, who also happens to be his betrothed, according to Naxi custom.
It is awkward for her, but Mu Shu’s sister Mu Yu helps take some of the heat
off her when she brings home a foreigner fiancée. Cultures and family members
clash in Zhang Chunhe & Wang Lei’s Hometown
on the Cloud (trailer
here),
which screens tonight as part of the Spotlight:
China! sidebar at this year’s Dances With Films.
Luo
Li is a student of Naxi culture. That is how she met Mu Shu. In recent years,
he has made his fame and fortune in Beijing as a modern sculptor, incorporating
traditional Naxi elements into his work. His parents really ought to be more
open to her, but they are emotionally attached to A Mei. Working as the village
school teacher, she has coached the village children to several victories in
traditional folk singing tournaments. Basically, she is Heidi, without the goat.
Alas,
Mu Shu’s parents and just about everyone else in the village bitterly resents Mu
Shu for breaking off with A Mei. To make amends, he agrees to go through the
ancient decoupling ritual, even though that would seem to make her embarrassment
even more public. Not that Mu Yu’s fiancé would know. As a foreigner, he will
have to make himself scarce, to prevent tainting the ceremony.
Zhang
& Wang capture the staggering beauty of Lijang as well as the distinctive
colors and rhythms of Naxi culture, but there narrative hits some weird notes (starting
with the implied notion the best way to honor Naxi culture is by commoditizing it).
Nevertheless, it offers an intriguing window into an under-represented ethnic
minority.
Our
resilient Luo Li has real star potential and veteran character actor Zhao
Xiaoming is suitably craggy and crabby as Mu’s father. Frankly, the cast is
quite professional and polished despite the film’s obvious independent status—even
produced outside the [embattled but experienced] Beijing indie network.
Hometown looks terrific and
it is generally well-meaning. It has been a struggle for many minority cultures
to survive in China, especially during the Cultural Revolutionary, so it is
nice to see Zhang & Wang helping to preserve it on film. At times, Zhang’s
screenplay drifts into melodramatic terrain, but he and his co-helmer maintain a
brisk pace. Recommended as cinematic tourism (with an attractive cast), Hometown on the Cloud screens today
(6/15), as part of the 2018 Dances With Films.