Listening to Mr. Fan Talk About the Past

The read

It runs a compact 1h 25m.

Synopsis

An unreleased documentary by Chinese filmmaker Kang Jianning, the film interweaves the recollections of academic Fan Xiuzhang—particularly his political ordeals in the 1950s and ’60s—with the sweeping arc of the Mao era and its procession of violent political campaigns. Its structure becomes a form of critique, juxtaposing individual agency against a regime that demanded absolute loyalty and the erasure of the self in service of the state.

Ratings

Key crew

• Kang JianningDirector

Cast

• Fan XiuzhangSelf