Returning to more character based storytelling, Yimou Zhang eschews the heavy production and vibrant action that has characterized his latest martial artsy films such as Hero in favor of this lower-key drama which tells the tale of one father's journey on a unique road trip throughout China. Although it would seem that this movie has many of the ingredients making for the profound film experience Riding Alone For Thousands Of Miles attempts to be, way too much falls flat here unfortunately.
Right from the abrupt introduction, one may sense something is quite not right for the tone of this film. Often lingering with beautifully shot imagery throughout nature, the script awkwardly contradicts this flow, feeling rushed, underdeveloped, and poorly written all at the same time, despite the sensitive and introspective pace Zhang was trying to achieve. The gentle performance of veteran Japanese actor Ken Takakura, while providing a pleasant enough diversion for a typical protagonist, simply does not have the energy to carry the film based on an extremely limited range of output here. His highly stoic demeanor does have it's subtle charm, but ultimately did not convey much of the emotional depth a heartfelt climax wished to culminate with. Likewise, many of the film's more emotionally heavy scenes, while thematically feeling strong, are certainly exploited and rendered less resonant by the unfortunate pandering that one feels the director is trying to impose on more sensitive types.
Sometimes, a director will know how to take material to a more personal realm, but here it just feels like whenever an important revelation or parallel to the main character's family life is in play, the execution becomes even more heavy handed and manipulative then the usually slow pace. It is too bad writing and direction cannot match the heart of this work, since the story itself is a beautiful one.
Right from the abrupt introduction, one may sense something is quite not right for the tone of this film. Often lingering with beautifully shot imagery throughout nature, the script awkwardly contradicts this flow, feeling rushed, underdeveloped, and poorly written all at the same time, despite the sensitive and introspective pace Zhang was trying to achieve. The gentle performance of veteran Japanese actor Ken Takakura, while providing a pleasant enough diversion for a typical protagonist, simply does not have the energy to carry the film based on an extremely limited range of output here. His highly stoic demeanor does have it's subtle charm, but ultimately did not convey much of the emotional depth a heartfelt climax wished to culminate with. Likewise, many of the film's more emotionally heavy scenes, while thematically feeling strong, are certainly exploited and rendered less resonant by the unfortunate pandering that one feels the director is trying to impose on more sensitive types.
Sometimes, a director will know how to take material to a more personal realm, but here it just feels like whenever an important revelation or parallel to the main character's family life is in play, the execution becomes even more heavy handed and manipulative then the usually slow pace. It is too bad writing and direction cannot match the heart of this work, since the story itself is a beautiful one.