Not One Less

I usually don't like movies where the primary actors are children, and I've been underwhelmed by Zhang Yimou before, but this was utterly charming.

Yimou scales down -- down from _Shanghai Triad_, way down from _To Live_, down even below _The Story of Qiu Ju_, with which this film shares something in common, namely a comically resolute heroine: an ill-equipped thirteen-year-old substitute teacher who treks from a mountain village to the big city, to retrieve a primary-school dropout. A film of extreme simplicity, even somewhat scrimping simplicity, with a cast of nonprofessionals and a consequent stiffness of performance.

great acting, love the simplicity

Cloying and slight work. It does shine in a few areas - road photography is always a plus with Zhang.

Zhang Yimou decided to do something more neorealist than his usual pretty-colors approach. It still isn't very good

I was not interested in this kind of subject at all, but the children acted well, very natural.

88.000

Is rare to see a film portraying reality without the unneeded enhancing of theatrical techniques or complex writing, that's what this film is about, a human story told in a way you will either be touched and moved or you will simply dismiss because is not intricate enough. Wei Minzhi, the main character is determination incarnated, she starts her journey out of self interest but by the end of the film it becomes something more beautiful that truly shines in the context of her surroundings.

I think the best thing a director can do when directing young children is basically to make them forget that they're acting in a movie. Zhang succeeds admirably at bringing this about in Not One Less. There's not a single cringe-worthy, poorly delivered line from any of the children in this movie. You could easily see this story being made into a major Hollywood tear-jerker. The ending in particular is a classic tug at the heart strings in the best Spielbergian tradition.

Could have been great, but wow does this movie drag at times. And it is very hard to feel empathy for any of the characters.

An interesting look at the lives of the poor and impoverished kids and how a girl just a few years older becomes their teacher. Her journey to bring back one of her students (more for her benefit, but whatever).

Reminded me a little bit of early Kiarostami. Filmed in a real village with non-actors using their real names. After the movie's release, the village went from rags to riches. Not all of it works, but when it does it's quite good.