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Sad movie hits the town
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Song Yingwen
IN most cases people watch movies for fun, but that doesn't mean that sad movies with the idea of making audiences cry are any less preferable to watch. A recent movie in Shenzhen, Root and Branches, is a good example.
Dubbed "the tear bomb", Root and Branches tells the story of four brothers and sisters in a poor Chinese family from northeastern China.
Despite the fact that the family had a rather difficult situation, their father worked as a music teacher in a school and so could hardly earn enough money to support the whole family, the kids led a happy life with loving parents in an atmosphere of music and laughter.
But a sudden change ended their sweet childhood, one night their parents were both killed in a traffic accident and so the kids, who were very close to each other, were forcibly separated and adopted by different families.
It was not until 20 years later that they were able to be reunited, when the eldest sister, who had moved abroad with her adopted parents and become a famous conductor, returned to China and spent a lot of effort looking for her brothers and sisters.
The film has drawn much attention from audiences even before its Tuesday night's premier, because it had been described as "stirring and appealing" for the vividly reproduced delicate fraternity, a relationship which must be strange to most modern Chinese children used to living in the one child family system.
And of course, the strong cast is another reason for the most favourable response. With Cui Jian, one China's most popular rock singers who is considered a spiritual idol for young people of the 1980s, and Liang Yongqi, a current pop star, as the leading characters, the film attracts audience of every kind, from teenagers to middle aged men and women. The premier of the film was such a hit that the Shenzhen Hall was packed to capacity.
"I want to see Cui Jian in films, this is the reason why I came to the movie today," a Mr Wang, in his 30s, told Shenzhen Daily. And of course, he left the cinema with not only the memory of his beloved idol, but also with tears in his eyes and a sentimentally sad heart.
"Being moved to tears is just one of the things we want to give our audiences, more important to us is we would like to give them an idea of the type of emotional attachments found within family life, which in today's busy lifestyle has been delegated to a less important place" Yu Zhong, the film's director said.
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