– Ming Wu’s debut feature explores motherhood and the conflict between individual desires through the story of a couple with opposing dreams
Xingchen Lü in Against the Flow
World-premiered in this year’s International Narrative Competition at the Tribeca Film Festival, Against the Flow is the debut feature by writer-director Ming Wu. Dayao (Weihao Xu) and his pregnant wife, Tiantian (Xingchen Lü), live in the countryside but overwork themselves in the city. He works in construction, while she cooks in a school cafeteria. Tiantian prefers the city, but Dayao prefers the tranquillity of nature. When Dayao is seriously injured on a construction site, Tiantian finds herself forced to make decisions about what’s best for them and their unborn baby.
Thanks to its plot and structure, Against the Flow is a film that reflects on generations, motherhood and the constant battle between what we want and what people – but mostly society – expect of us. It is also about being able to say no, and searching for the ability to reclaim our own individual voice, when the relationships we are in jeopardise our strongest beliefs.
Written by the helmer together with Jérémie Dubois, the 80-minute film is an ode to rigorism and simplicity, exploring familial bonds in a style that promises to mark the start of a great festival career for its director. It’s not hard to believe that we’ll probably see more from Wu in the years to come. Thanks to an intimate style of direction, and the dreamlike, dimmed cinematography by Rui Poças (which at times resembles Caravaggio’s paintings), the story feels familiar, and even if it takes place in a distant location, audiences from all over the world will be able to see something of their own life experience reflected in it.
There is something enchanting about the way we see Tiantian’s character progress through the film. When she befriends Xiaoying (Catherine Fang), a local girl who introduces her to the possibilities of urban living, she becomes a different person, starting to see life from a whole different perspective. Everyone can surely think of a person in their lives who has had a similar impact. In the same way, almost every viewer has probably experienced some kind of clash with a partner over life choices, much like the conflicts between Tiantian and Dayao. He longs for nature, simplicity and tranquillity, envisioning this way of life for his entire family, while his partner dreams of a different future. But what happens when such a difference in perspective seems impossible to reconcile? Can a couple survive when their visions of happiness and fulfilment pull them in opposite directions, especially with a newborn on the way?
With a talented ensemble cast and a simple, yet effective, idea at its core, this title is most likely going to find a place in the hearts of those who come across it. However, it is also a movie that is not necessarily designed for broad commercial distribution; instead, it is bound to find its audience on the festival circuit, where its intimate style and contemplative storytelling can be fully appreciated.
Against the Flow was produced by France’s House on Fire and Luxembourg’s Les Films Fauves together with Terratreme Filmes (Portugal) and Fasad (Sweden). Its sales are handled by House on Fire.
