The New Era of Platform

Despite what I had previously heard about the film, Platform, I genuinely enjoyed the film, in fact, I believe it was the only film I could manage to stay focused on this whole semester. Therefore, yes I would recommend this film to a wide range of audiences. A bit of a forewarning:  the film is not compatable for impatient viewers. Platform took around three hours to watch, even so it was still good.

Before writing this review I had looked over reviews by others. I was dismayed to find that most found the film superficial, time consuming, and boring. I agree the film takes a certain amount of patience to watch, at times it only covers the surface of the post Mao era, and can be rather anti-climatic. Despite these faults the film offers a greater amount of benefits.

For one it gives viewers a telescope in which to look into the lives of everyday people trying to survive in difficult times.

The film details the lives of a select group of youngsters as they try to make their way in the world. Each go on different paths; however, all leave their hometown of Fenyang, China, which also happens to be the birth town of Jia Zhangke. They all leave to explore the outside world, and I suppose to find something better for themselves.

The names in Platform tend to mush together in my mind. The only person's name I could not, even if I wanted to, forget was Cui Sanming, the cousin of Cui Minliang. His story was just so heart wrenching. The man never received an education. He cannot read, he works in a mine where he is not even guaranteed his safety, and he will never marry. And the worst part is that he accepts his lot in life; he knows he can never give himself or anyone a better life. He is going to live out his life in a mine and be stuck with his mother until she dies, and when she does die he will have no one.

I think the film gives more of a intimate and personal perspective to a group of people who are geologically far away. By telling their stories from humanistic point of view, Jia Zhangke accomplished what most directors fail to do or have difficulty in doing, he gives viewers the opportunity to have sympathy for others.