Lead stars in Chinese saga win best actor awards at Berlinale
BERLIN: Chinese actor Wang Jingchun and actress Yong Mei won the Silver Bears for Best Actor and Best Actress for their performances in the film ‘So Long, My Son' at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) on Saturday.
‘So Long, My Son', directed by Wang Xiaoshuai, is a family saga spanning 30 years. The story of one family dealing with the loss of their son, as masterfully brought to life by the lead actor and actress, Wang Jingchun and Yong Mei, has moved many viewers to tears at Berlinale.
“This is the tragedy of a woman, a family that loses its son,” Yong said as she picked up the trophy.
“We were happy we were able to complete the film.”
Four years in the making, Wang's three-hour epic tells the story of a family that deals with hardship, grief and some joy during China's emergence from the chaos of the late 1970s to become today's economic superpower.
“In the years after the Cultural Revolution, there was a slogan ‘Look forward and don't think about the past',” said Wang, describing his parents' generation's resolve to focus on work after the economic and human disaster of Mao Zedong's policy of purge and urban deportation.
“But now, with the economy having made certain strides, you need to take a fresh look at that phrase. We do need the to draw lessons from the past in order to avoid making unnecessary mistakes,” he said.
In the early 1980s, a young couple, played by Wang Jingchun and Yong Mei, lead a modest but secure existence at a state-owned factory, comfortable in a oneroom flat in a factory dormitory.
Their lives are turned upside down by the death of their son, by their decision to abide by China's then “One Child Policy” and by Deng Xiaoping's market reforms, which cost them their jobs and the “Iron Ricebowl” of comfortable subsistence it guaranteed.
The two lead actors give a powerful portrayal of humans bowed by the weight of having lived a life too full of pain and experience, and reveal at the end
This is the tragedy of a woman, a family that loses its son. We were happy we were able to complete the film. Yong Mei, lead actress
an almost saintly capacity for forgiveness and reconciliation.
“I'm interested in people's ability to love and their inner benevolence in China,” the director said. “My parents and grandparents have gone through so much but are still very brave and optimistic... That's a very moving thing.”
A total of 23 films worldwide were selected for this year's competition section, among which 16 competed for the coveted Golden Bear and Silver Bears. A jury led by French actress and Academy Award winner Juliette Binoche had the final say on the winners.
This year, the Berlin International Film Festival runs from Feb. 7 to Feb. 17.